I can’t believe that the time passes so quickly, it has been 26 weeks since we launch #APaintPortrait. The 52-week project is half way through, I hope that you all enjoy all the portraits. Each and every portrait they meant a lot to me, as I’ve spent hours and days to put my thoughts on it.
This week, I would love to share one of my favorite people I knew, I love Britta, she inspired me in my life through her arts, her words and herself. She is a beautiful and amazing individual. She shares with me her ideas and her adventure and gives me warm vibes.
When it gets all crisp and cold there is nothing you want to do more than make your home cozier. And the simplest way to do that is to just start tossing sheepskin rugs around like confetti. Draped over a chair, sofa, on a floor, on a bench- they add fabulous texture and a high-end look while upgrading the fuzzy, awesome factor of wherever they land by like, 100 percent. You’ll be downright anxious to get started on those work projects with a seat like this waiting for you. As soon as the rug in there it sucked every bit of light, brightness, and cheer right out of the room, giving a flokati vibe to it too!
Looking to stay warm on those cool summer evenings while you’re sipping on a colorful cocktail with your family? Faux fur will add just the warmth you need. In this fall isn’t it great to go home lying on this comfy furry rug and blanket. Fur is the one thing that helps to turn the living room to be really light, bright, and cheerful. If you’re going with a neutral color palette, a sheepskin rug is a perfect way to bring texture into space without using too much color.
You don’t really have to wait till winter to wear this fur. This fall you can have this fur to stay with you in style.
It has been a busy week, where I almost think that yesterday is Thursday rather than Friday. When things get overlapped, you will always forget one or two tasks that are needed to be completed. The feeling of forgetting is really bad.
However, we can’t avoid it. It happens all the time as our brain are not built for multitasking. Likewise, they are not built to work early in the morning. Don’t worry if things go as your plan. This is life, what we can do is to prevent it.
Things you can do are;
Plan your next day before you sleep
Write a to-do list (even small errand like clean the table)
Set a phone reminder (for the task that is needed to be complete at a certain time)
Title: Dear Brian Instagram’s account: @innisbrian
These days even we’re getting busier, we’re motivated by every challenge. The fact is I felt happier every day. I felt blessed to do what I’m doing right now each day; be it work or anything that going through in my life.
Bradley Whitford once says, “Infuse your life with action. Don’t wait for it to happen. Make it happen. Make your own future. Make your own hope. Make your own love. And whatever your beliefs, honor your creator, not by passively waiting for grace to come down from upon high, but by doing what you can to make grace happen… yourself, right now, right down here on Earth.”
I think what Bradley Whitford said was very meaningful, make your thoughts into action and that’s just simply simple that you thought!
Just like @innisbrian, seeing his Instagram’s page you just need to believe that you can live truthfully like how he did. Being, so carefree and making every moment a magic!
We’ve just sent away the Summer and there’s no denying, Autumn is on the way. Personally, I love the Autumn as much as the Winter (even though I still love Summer but it’s just different). Since you can see we stayed in a tropical country, it normal for us to long for four seasons. Even though we don’t have four seasons but say who that we can’t inject it into our everyday life? We always can create it with thoughts and decorations!
While researching some Autumn’s inspiration, we’ve noticed a classic trend for all Minimalist. This year Autumn we’ll welcome the sense of delicacy with the touch of cotton, wool, and use of paper (prints). These are the few main elements you can play with. We should never leave out the cozy touch that autumn has given to us. Therefore, we suggest using soft fabric with the touch of greens to give out the warmth in the cooling temperate.
There is 2 kinds of purple dreams for me, mysterious and dreamy. When it comes to mysterious, it is dark purple and misty. It usually occurs in the forest and in the mist there is a haunted house. However, when we talk about dreamy purple. It’s usually dream of me in a field of lavender, lying down looking in the sky.
Ever shades of a color have there own stories. Every side of us have different stories and reason too. “Stars behind cosmic glass, the light behind one’s eyes” -Tracey-anne McCartn
Happy Chocolate Milkshake Day! At the same time, it ‘s still a humid day in Singapore and thus we have prepared this S’more Milkshake for our breakfast. Who says milkshake can’t be healthy and fun at the same time? Just a little bits of chocolate in the morning, it helps energize yourself for the day.
S’mores. Oh, how I love S’mores. But, who doesn’t? If you don’t then I’m sorry we just can’t be friends. The combination of graham crackers, marshmallows, and milk chocolate. How could you go wrong with that? Especially in milkshake form. Heck yeah. This milkshake is sure to fix an s’more craving. There are toasted S’mores blended right in!
Although summer has just left us, but when it comes to nostalgic sweets, S’mores rank at the top of the list. The combination of gooey toasted marshmallows, creamy chocolate, and crunchy graham crackers instantly brings back memories of the carefree days of summer (we still can enjoy the memories of summer).
The flavor of toasted marshmallows — I like mine blackened and crispy on the outside and soft inside, by the way — is everything. It’s a burnt sugar whiff of vanilla coating a stretchy white cloud. It’s summer and time spent outside and crackly campfires and I know this is getting really twee but I don’t care, I just want to stuff everything awesome about them into a frosty glass and slurp it through a straw. I hope you join me.
If you enjoy the flavor of toasted marshmallows you will LOVE these milkshakes. They taste like you are drinking a toasted marshmallow – they’re so good!
This delicious milkshake is the perfect way to cool down and get your S’mores fix this summer. Sipping on these milkshakes inside a cozy blanket fort with my kiddos is one of my most cherished summer memories. How do S’mores help you create summer memories?
INGRIENTS |
6 scoops vanilla ice cream
1/2 cup milk
a mixture of large and small toasted marshmallows
graham cracker crumbs for garnish, about half of one sheet or less
Optional * chocolate sauce for drizzling and 1 extra toasted marshmallow for garnish
METHODS |
Torch the marshmallows with a kitchen torch until they begin to brown.
Place 5 graham cracker squares in a plastic bag and crush until finely ground. Pour the crumbs onto a small plate.
Dip the top of your glasses into the melted chocolate, then into the crushed graham cracker crumbs. Set aside.
Place ice cream and milk in a blender, top with the rest of the crushed graham cracker crumbs. Blend until smooth. If you have to add more milk, you can do so.
Pour into glasses, drizzle with some of the remaining melted chocolate, top with remaining toasted marshmallows, and garnish with remaining graham cracker crumbs. If desired, you can also garnish with whole pieces of chocolate biscuits!
What kind of Chocolate Milkshake did you have for your Chocolate Milkshake Day? Didn’t get to do it? It’s okay, try this recepie now. It is never too late!
Please make them and take a photo, send us an email, tag us on Instagram, tweet us, anything. We love to yours! There will be more exclusive stories on our #stellerstories profile thus check it out whenever you can!
I love sharing my thought through my words in letters, and postcards. They’ll deliver my thought to people that I want to know and love. Back in the olden days, when we were in elementary, we have long holidays and we barely meet our friends. For me, rather than spending on the phone, I love to write letters or send a postcard and the connection just never end. It is not the fastest ways to stay connected but the most efficient way to get to know your friend better. We share all kind of things and I have it kept until now. Those memories just make me love to write to people more!
However, I’m a visual person as well, so it always starts with a picture, and then I get obsessed with the idea, sometimes too much. I have these blank books in which I take notes, and I add postcards and other physical items. That why I love Gizem even more, her project about sharing life’s moments through postcards. It’s just so inspiring! Get to know her, by clicking the link above! Share your thought with her and she will be so welcome to get to you back!
Every one of us struggles to find happiness each day of their life. We fought through the stressful days and become our own warrior. Some of us tried so hard to put on a smile but have you question yourself. How do you fight for your own happiness?
Question: How do you fight for our own happiness?
Angela: “I used to be an over-thinker, I worried about things and upset myself. Now, I have changed, ever since a friend who shares with me her philosophy in life. The word positive has brought me happiness each day. I learn to be happy with regards to any difficulties happen to me. When you have learned to think the thing in a positive way you will be much happier.”
Joe: When I am young, I always had been a follower to people I care. I always try to avoid argument and drama with them, as I want everyone to be happy. Thus I tried to do a thing in their way, making sure it nothing goes wrong. Those days, I don’t even care to explain myself even I’m not in fault. I apologized instead.
However, when I get older, I found out that I can’t make everyone happy. People do things differently; no matter how hard I try, I am not them. Thus argument still happened. This is when I know how to say NO! It is easy to say “yes” but on the other hand saying “no” is hard. As I always scared how people I look and judge about that (saying I’m unfriendly). This is not right, as I’m unhappy.
Now I open up myself by telling my point of view, opinion and how I feel. It’s okay that they don’t listen but at least I try. This is kind of a way how I release my unhappiness and be happy. Most importantly, l love me now.
Share with us how you keep yourself happy? We love to know your stories!
“Every time, I look at a zebra, I can’t figure out whether it’s black with white stripes or white with black stripes, and that frustrates me.” – Jodi Picoult
There will always be 2 sides of explanation or even more for every situation. Like zebra, there is no right answer. It may be right to one, this doesn’t mean it apply to all. Please look in other shoes, and think of them. It may be frustrated but not every individual is the same. We are all unique.
I’ll tie this into cooking in a minute, but I found this framework quite fascinating and it was the first time I’ve ever thought of myself as a “rebel”. The word seems a little dramatic in this context, but this was one of the very few times that I’ve been able to relate to some sort of generalized human personality category.
I fully understand the benefits of having good habits, but I’m finally realizing why I’m more efficient at life without trying to do things in a structured or planned out the way, while the rest of the world seems to live in list-land. I’m talking about this here because the way that we form (or don’t form) habits has a lot to do with how we cook and eat. The resistance of internal expectations is why I’m so drawn to cook intuitively, experiment, and let curiosity guide the process.
I love all turnips, especially the small white Japanese turnips that appear in the greenmarkets in the late spring. Since, turnips are related to the cruciferous family and are a great veggie for cancer survivors who want to make healthy and tasty food choices. This recipe is a little East meets West. It pairs butter and honey along with sake and miso to create a sweet velvety glaze that turns this humble root veggie into a real taste treat.
This recipe is a wonderful way to showcase spring turnips. Miso and butter are a wonderful combination and naturally pair well with turnips. This is a great side dish to serve alongside chicken or tofu and a little rice. Grab a fork!
Ingredients |
1poundsmall turnips, trimmed, scrubbed, cut into 1” wedges
2tablespoonswhite miso
2tablespoonsunsalted butter
1teaspoonsugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2tablespoonsfresh lemon juice
Methods |
Combine turnips, miso, butter, and sugar in a medium skillet, then add water just to cover vegetables. Season with salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook turnips, turning occasionally, until they are tender and liquid is evaporated, 15–20 minutes.
Once all the liquid has cooked off, keep cooking turnips, tossing occasionally, until they are golden brown and caramelized and the sauce thickens and glazes the vegetables, about 5 minutes longer.
Add lemon juice and a splash of water to the pan and swirl to coat turnips. Season with salt and pepper.
NOTE FROM THE TWO SISTERS: When buying turnips, think small and tender, and choose the smallest purple topped roots you can find. If your turnips come with greens, do not waste them! Wash and chop the greens and add them at the end of Step 1. Cook the turnips with the greens, covered for 1 minute before continue onto Step 2.
Do you have leftover Turnips? Check out the Turnips Pickled we have made last week!
Please make them and take a photo, send us an email, tag us on Instagram, tweet us, anything. We love to yours! There will be more exclusive stories on our #stellerstories profile thus check it out whenever you can!
“The first week of August hangs at the very top of summer, the top of the live-long year, like the highest seat of a Ferris wheel when it pauses in its turning. The weeks that come before are only a climb from balmy spring, and those that follow a drop to the chill of autumn, but the first week of August is motionless, and hot. It is curiously silent, too, with blank white dawns and glaring noons, and sunsets smeared with too much color.” ― Natalie Babbitt, Tuck Everlasting
However, everyone still craves for summer to be longer than ever just before the autumn come. We missed the summer’s memories, even it’s warm and hot. There was tears, laughter but what we missed the most was the joy we have together. A painting for every one that fell in love with the summer.
Enjoy your very last bit of this summer before we say hi again next year!
Centuries of poetry have been penned about the twinkle of starlight; the shimmery, wobbling surface of calm waters on a sunny day, the instinctual allure of diamonds—whether it’s magical or aspirational, there’s just something about sparkle, a mild thrill that makes your breath catch in the best way. It’s sad to say that Summer is going to be over. Our Summer has been fun, days it just likes glittering.
When I am a little girl, sparklers is a must have for me, even until I’m all grown up they are still my best friend. They are playful, shining like the sparkling light and they will never be disappointing us in any happy occasion.
I always have this love and hate relationship with September. As that, it means the summer is ending soon. There is nothing wrong with autumn. Just seeing the rain day make my mood down.
“Outside the leaves on the trees constricted slightly; they were the deep done green of the beginning of autumn. It was a Saturday in September. There would only be four. While, the clouds were high and the swallows would be here for another month. Or else before they left for the south before they returned again next summer.” ― Ali Smith
Have you tried our Purple Cabbage Pickled? If you are not a lover of Purple Cabbage, don’t worry this week we will be sharing you a brand new pickle – Turnips Pickled. Poor turnip. Sort of a wallflower, this drab white vegetable is easily overlooked at the market. The taste is a bit bland. Pickled turnips will certainly not appeal to everyone, but they are a stunning addition to any spread of salads and look great on a plate next to a sandwich. When I put this Pickled turnips turquoise colored dish the effect was quite stunning.
I find these pickles don’t last as long as others, and they’re best enjoyed up within a few weeks after they’re made. Thankfully they’re easy – and inexpensive – to make, so you can whip up a batch in no time. In fact, after my dinner guests wiped me out, I went out and bought more turnips. And now I have another jar in my refrigerator, ready and waiting for the next onslaught of guests.
What once seemed a forgettable, not so interesting vegetable, has now transformed into a curiously addicting, stand-apart-from-the-crowd favorite of mine! The once bland flavor is replaced with a quite assertive tang, prominently of vinegar. With turnips and its other root vegetable cousins now in season, this is the perfect time to pick up a few pounds and start preserving these little lovelies into something special! Let’s get started with this simple and beautiful recipe.
INGREDIENTS |
a pound white turnips, tailed and peeled
1 tsp of coriander seed
bay leave
¾ cup distilled white vinegar
¾ cup cold water
4 teaspoons salt
METHODS |
Cut turnips into wedges or ½” thick slices. Pack tightly in a quart jar with the coriander seed and bay leave.
Mix the vinegar and water; add salt and stir until dissolved. Pour over the turnips. Cover with the lid and refrigerate for three days. Stir, rotating the vegetables in the jar, and don’t hold back from tasting. Refrigerate for three more days, then enjoy.
Stir, rotating the vegetables in the jar and don’t hold back from the tasting. Refrigerate for three more days, then enjoy.
NOTE FROM THE TWO SISTERS: These is simple refrigerator pickles that gain zest, character, and crunch over time. Select turnips that are heavy and hard, the smaller the better. The lift should last a month or so refrigerated. The pickles are delicious on their own or alongside a sandwich, a hummus plate with bread—or served with olives and cocktails.
Do stay tuned for more of our upcoming recipes on how we serve these amazing pickles with main dishes.
Please make them and take a photo, send us an email, tag us on Instagram, tweet us, anything. We love to yours! There will be more exclusive stories on our #stellerstories profile thus check it out whenever you can!
I’m not a person who believe in fate when it comes to friendship. However, I do believe that “no friendship is an accident”. Have you ever wonder how two stranger are brought together and become friends?
This sounded old-fashion, if we were all given a chance to be connect in this wide world but it all depend on us if we grab the chances that have given us. It could be just a second, a moment to get to know this person and chances was only given once.
“Life is what happens to us while we are making other plans.” ― Allen Saunders
Being someone who loves photography, there is always certain style we attached with. But there are people who want to achieve different style for the moment of their story.
They are dark, cold, iron-ish and filled with mystic”, they are just so seducing! Never will I thought that I’ve been attracted to the rustic-industrial style for a while. From the old abandoned buildings to the everyday basic like the kitchen’s photographs attached above in the mood board.
They are so subductive, they seem to like having some sort of power to drew you closer to them as if they are whispering to you. And, that’s the power of what a rustic touch can do or create. That’s why I have fallen in love with them!
Well, I also couldn’t deny the fact that under my colorful personality I do have a dark side as well, I love to express them through my arts.
It’s already coming to the end of August and we’ve been enjoying this month so far.
Somethings exciting just waiting throughout this summer and it all begin with this August. As the first on my list is to kick start my bucket list with my closest friend, Fatin – we are so much alike yet so different, or that the reason we become partner-in-crime in lots of ways! We have a goal is to complete a list of a dream we want to achieve together; travel, skydiving and of course hiking!
Just a couple week ago, she suggested spontaneously to go hiking. And of course, I love the idea of what she suggested since it has been something I always want to try! Since both of us is new to hiking, we decided to start with something much at ease. After lots of researching, we decide to start with MacRitchie Nature Trail. It was famous with the treetop, thus we didn’t plan to go with that as we hear that it was hard for beginners. However, we sort of completed it in the end.
Date | 2nd August 2016
Starting Point – Ending Point | St Therese Home – Island Club Road
Duration |3.5hrs
The day itself, we met at 9am and approximately reached at 10 later than we expected. We were excited and I just worried that we will miss the stops to alight. Once you alight at the bus stop, you could spot the entrance immediately. There will be only a path that leads you toward the MacRitchie Reservoir if you are lucky you might spot some goose along the residence area.
Thus, before you realize, the next moment what you focusing will be the panorama view of the reservoir through your eyes. Both of us was excited, we decide to go with the wooden trail with the crowds. We started it to suit our pace, many hikers just passes us quickly. Somehow, we hope there will be someone nearby as I’m really worried about the monkey jumping out from nowhere. Nevertheless, we enjoyed our slow pace, there were steep slopes and rocky path, therefore, please be careful.
Some extra tips for you if you are going;
There will be monkeys in the area. Don’t feed them and don’t eat too openly or they’ll approach you for food. But if you must, like I did, just bring a morsel of food and be very careful no monkeys see you eat.
Also, don’t forget insect repellent and sunblock! I forgot insect repellent and only put sunblock on my face, so now I have bites on my arms and legs and very burnt shoulders. Not a cute look. (based on Joe’s experience)
I find that hiking is far more enjoyable and less painful when there’s company. Make this a group outing and share the pain! The more the merrier! Yay!
The Tree Top walk is one of Singapore’s truly uniquely nature experiences and sadly one of the last few in the Country. The attraction is good for a full half day nature adventure for the entire family.
#BehindPlainCanvas |
I’m a newbie in hiking, this series of our “Hiking Stories” is to share our experiences in hiking monthly of places we visit. Please share with us your version of #ourhikingstories and we could learn more about your journey as well!
Surprisingly, we’ve completed the trail earlier than we expected since it’s the hardest path among all the recommended trails. I’ve completed the first hiking with my best friend, the journey wouldn’t be this awesome without her. And I’m looking forward to accomplished more challenges with her each month. Of course maybe with Joe as well since she did mention she would like to join me!
We hope that all of you will love this new column, for those who love hiking please share with us your hiking stories by tagging us on Instagram and hashtag #ourhikingstories. We love to know more about yours!
Someday I hope people can come as one. Together we share and care for each other. Someday I wish that there will be no war, and people settle things by talking and sharing. By doing so, I think the world will be less stressful and more peaceful. When we start to connect with each other. When we try to understand each other and stay together. We could solve a problem rather than create a new one.
I wish!
“You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us. And the world will live as one.” ― John Lennon
From watching the TV show to reading books, we always want to try making our own pasta from scratch. However, due to the lack of equipment, we didn’t dare trying it as we worried the outcome. We’ve been wanting to make this recipe for a while. We’ve been pining away and found a few recipes that looked easy enough to take a go at. After looking at several recipes, we have been dreaming of making homemade pasta.
We always thought pasta making would be hard, but the posts were so pretty and made it look so simple and easy. Several of those bloggers even said it was. Well, wrong. This recipe was not that easy. Maybe it is because it took me a while to get my beet puree and flour ratios correct. But pasta making is hard but fun, but really time-consuming. So pick your battles and only tackle it if you’ve got a couple of hours to devote to the process. Hopefully, this batch of dough will last me a few meals. There was nothing super difficult about it, just takes a little elbow grease and time.
We have always said that the magic of this dish is that it gets people who love beets excited about them all over again. For those who think they don’t like beets, the color is enough for them to give it a try, and chances are they will like it — we know because my sister is a loud and proud beet hater and she will even eat this pasta!
INGREDIENTS |
2 large beets
6 cups of flour + more for rolling out dough
3 eggs
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 teaspoon of kosher salt
METHOD|
In a blender or food processor, puree beets, eggs, olive oil and salt until smooth. About 1 minute.
Combine beet puree and flour. Start with three cups of flours and mix on slow with the dough hook until well combined. Add a cup of flour at a time until all remaining flour is combined. The dough should be a little tacky, and forming a ball in the mixer and not sticking to the sides of the bowl. If dough is too wet, add more flour. If a dough is dry, add water, one teaspoon at a time.
Next, knead the dough by hand for 5-7 minutes on a floured surface.
Then roll out the dough. Be sure to get it nice and thin. As thin as you can get it without ripping. Use a knife or stamp to cut to your desired shape and size.
Simply add mussel and homemade pesto sauce to the pasta for the best combination. Remember the Mushroom Pasta with Homemade Pesto Sauce, this time using the same recipe by replacing Pistachio with pine nut. This pine nut pesto sauce will enhance the taste and texture of the pasta.
INGREDIENTS|
3 tbsp of olive oil
455g fresh live mussels (washed cleaned and debearded)
1 clove of garlic finely sliced
150ml of dry white wine
1 small knob of butter
2 good handfuls of flat leaf parsley roughly chopped
455g beetroot tagliatelle
salt and freshly ground black pepper pesto ( pesto sauce)
METHOD |
Put the olive oil into a very hot thick bottomed high sided pan and straight away add the mussels and garlic.
Place a lid on and shake for around 20 seconds it will sizzle furiously. Then add the white wine. Replace the lid and leave on the fast heat for about 12 minutes. This will steam open the mussels (discard any unopened ones). Add the knob of butter and the parsley and remove from the heat.
Meanwhile, cook the beetroot tagliatelle in boiling salted water until al dente. Gently toss the tagliatelle and mussels together until the juices just coat the pasta then check for seasoning and serve with a generous spoonful of pesto on top.
The colours are quite interesting and the mussels and pesto work surprisingly well together so it is definitely worth trying and it is very quick to make.
Pease makes them and take a photo, send us an email, tag us on Instagram, tweet us, anything. We love to yours! There will be more exclusive stories on our #stellerstories profile, check it out whenever you can!
Question: When someone asks you, what’s your love? What is the first thing you thought about?
For me, it would be capturing moments. Since I was young, I love to write, I love to draw, I love to hold onto my camera. Then I wasn’t skilled but I fall in love in capturing and document the precious time.
Apart from photography and writing, one of my love must be painting. However, I would never proclaim myself as a painter but I love to express my emotion through my brush to capture the thing I see.
Edvard Munch once said, “Painting picture by picture, I followed the impressions my eye took in at heightened moments. I painted only memories, adding nothing, no details that I did not see. Hence the simplicity of the paintings, their emptiness.”
Stripes stormed the summer in every style you can possibly imagine—some ran horizontal while others vertical; there were thick lines and super skinny ones, too. These bold graphics can run from color-blocked to an amalgam of hues pitted against one another racing in opposite directions. The dizzying yet striking designs offer a more modern way to don the trend, and we’re willing to bet they’ll be everywhere come summer.
Other than seeing stripes in the clothes we wear, you can put them in your home too! Like having stripes cushions and pillows on your sofa or day bed. Or even a sheer curtains for your window in order to give your home a hint of summer and beach feeling.
However, don’t overdo it as you may give a prison feeling to one. Keep it simple we just a few items and you are off to go!
Since young, there is always a mindset of me being a shadow of my sister. As I am always following her along since I was a kid. I follow the way she acts, speak and even the liking of hers. When my mom scold when I have done something wrong, I will say “I learn from sister!”
“I thought the most beautiful thing in the world must be the shadow.” ― Sylvia Plath
The next following weeks, in between we’re going to share a series of our favorite homemade pickles to you. It is easy and tasteful for those of you who are busy however who want to remind healthily. Stop buying commercial jars or cans food, making your own pickles and sauce is very simple, and you could do them all at one go. With proper storage, they could be very lasting.
Another name for this Purple Cabbage Pickled is Red Cabbage Pickled, as it turns red in the pickling brine. As purple cabbage is a PH indicator. It turns red in acidic conditions (purple in neutral, and green or yellow in alkaline, cool huh?). Purple Cabbage Pickled is very simple, and it’s a great addition to so many things. We love it for topping burgers, tacos, and sandwiches, and it’s a great side for anything spicy, and anything Asian.
It’s fun to play with this recipe to get different flavours. You can change the vinegar for cider vinegar and add some soy sauce, and ginger slices for a specifically Asian twist. Moreover, the onion can be changed for black mustard, fennel, or sesame.
When it comes for purchasing fresh vegetables the local wet market is our best choice. How to choose a cabbage? Look carefully, choose the cabbage that is brightly coloured, heavy for its size and with its crisp outer leaves still attached. Do also remember to avoid those that are light, dull and have had their outer leaves removed.
When you have all your ingredients, let’s get started!
INGREDIENTS (2 jars, 270ml)
1/2 Purple Cabbage
1 Onion
400ml of Cider Vinegar
2 tsp of Salt
2 tbsp of Sugar
DIRECTION
The night before you wish to assemble the pickle, slice it very finely and leave in a bowl over night covered with the salt. Mix it well.
The next day, drain the cabbage and leave to drip dry for 2 hours. Add in the finely sliced onion into the cabbage and mix it.
Next in a dry pan big enough to hold all the remaining ingredients, add the sugar & the vinegar. Bring to the boil.
Place the cabbage mix in a jar, then pour the hot pickling solution over the top. Seal and leave in a dark cupboard for a minimum of 3 weeks before eating.
NOTE FROM THE TWO SISTERS: We have tested and tried many times while preparing pickles. We’ve failed numerous of times even we follow suggestion through books and online. Then we realized that the reason we failed is because the temperature of our country. Singapore is hot and humid therefore even we store it in a dark cool place, it spoiled quickly. For those who stayed in the Asia like us, we suggested storing your pickles in the fridge for a longer consuming storage.
Do stay tuned for more of our upcoming recipes on how we serve these amazing pickles with main dishes.
Please make them and take a photo, send us an email, tag us on Instagram, tweet us, anything. We love to yours! There will be more exclusive stories on our #stellerstories profile, check it out whenever you can!
For those of you that follow our site, you must realize that every Wednesday actually is our #apaintportrait column. However, it didn’t happen yesterday and what happen?
Well, I want to take the chance to dedicate “A Paint Portrait” to my best friend, sister, and partner-in-crime – Fatin, @effizzxti. Today, on her birthday I want to surprise her with this portrait along with the message.
Although, we might not know each other for life but she is the one who could understand me. We are so much alike and yet so different and that is why I love her so much! I will never forget the day we met in class, a girl who asked me to call her by an initial “F”. I thought she must be as be weird as I do however both of us mix around better with strange people in our life.
Although she was younger than me and just like my little sister. Yet she is mature and teaches everything that I lack. With her accompany I grow up stronger each day. With her, I dare to do things that I don’t normally do and I truly appreciate meeting her in my life!
William Shakespeare once says, “A friend is one that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still, gently allows you to grow.”
F, Happy Birthday! A couple of years back you help me celebrate mine 24th, today is yours. While I want to make you a promise, let’s be part of your special day like you did. Till we grow old~
You may say we are one of those thrifty’s girls, both of us love pretty and cute little things from accessories to household needs, however, times we just never want to spend extra money on things if we can save a penny. However the ultimate reason is since young, we love making things on our own with the influence of our mom.
It has been fun making things with her, she is creative and a talent handywoman. She always tell us, “we’ll just keep on trying it even if we failed, at the end of the day you will just gain knowledge from your failure”. She taught us to be innovative, sometimes we laugh at her silliness on her creation but surprisingly it just works! We appreciated that she gave us all the freedom and lead us to where we are right now.
When it come to baking, it is best to use room temperature egg. Thus we don’t know where could we put the eggs as we usually leave them in the fridge. So rather than buying the egg with the cardboard carton that I’ll have to force ourselves to throw out once it couldn’t be used we made this instead – DIY Clay Egg Crate. Something to help me hold all the eggs and as a decorative accessories for our kitchen.
SUPPLIES
Cardboard egg holder (keep it when you purchase of eggs, preferably to be cardboard materials)
DAS modeling clay (air hardening)
Containers (for the painting use)
Sponge / Brush
Martha Stewart Craft – Acrylic paint
Martha Stewart Craft – High Gloss Finish
DIRECTIONS
Cut the excess from off the egg carton until you have the basic shape and roll out your clay.
Lay the clay over the carton and starting in the middle begin to press into the spaces. Don’t worry if you make holes. You can patch these up later.
Once you have the basic shape you need to smooth all of the clay with water. I spent about half an hour just going over to make this as smooth as possible at this stage. This will save you time sanding later!
Leave to dry overnight and then peel off the cardboard from the bottom of the clay. Now sand down the edges, inside, and bottom of the clay carton. Sharpen the edges and smooth the rounded parts.
Paint on a few layers of varnish and leave to dry. Your carton is ready to display your decorated eggs or your jewelry collection. Which ever you wish!
This egg crate is simple and fun to make with the little kids at home. You just have to mold it in shape, dry it and paint it into the color that you like. You can even paint it into chalkboard and have fun writing things on it.
Make them take a photo, send us an email, tag us on Instagram, tweet us, anything. More stories on our #stellerstories, we want to see yours! It would make the day!
The hottest kitchens in town are all installing marble worktops. This gorgeous gray and white shiny stone once considered stiff and cold is having a moment. Just because we missed the boat, it doesn’t mean that we couldn’t apply this trends to our lifestyle.
Moreover, as we grow up so is our style and us slowly moving away from the fun and playful look and into something a bit more sophisticated. Of course, changing up your furniture doesn’t necessarily mean going out and spending loads of pennies on new things. It can be marble accessories like plates, laptop covers and chopping boards placed with enthusiasm throughout our home. Just a few simple marble pieces you are able to achieve the look that you want.
Have you scrolled through this post? Tell me now that you are not beginning to get warm feelings for this cold trendsetter.
xoxo, Joe.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
It has been a week since the release of Pokémon Go and I am already addicted to the game. There are both good and bad critics with this game. Some say this is a good bonding game but some say it is turning everyone into walking zombie.
For me, this is a very interactive game. As I am able to walk around the city, finding new Pokémon. This is sometimes I never though I will be doing at all. Moreover, I have been walking more as I need to hatch the egg. This game also allows me to discover a new place in Singapore.
I do admit that I got hit on the wall or trip over as my eyes are on the phone. Thus don’t be like me, remember to be careful when you are playing this game. There is a vibration setting to notify there’s Pokémon around. So you don’t have to keep staring at your phone.
For those of you who have not get try with this game, go try it now. It’s a worth it!
“We do have a lot in common. The same Earth, the same air, the same sky. Maybe if we start looking at what the same instead of always looking at the difference. Well..who knows!” – Meow
Have you tried our last week weekend brunch Summer Steak with Coriander Chutney yet? If you haven’t please try it, we promised that making Ciabatta can be very easy if you follow our suggestion.
Other than seafood just out of the ocean, I can’t wait for all the summer farm produce. All I need is a loaf of great bread for making sandwiches pack for the day. I don’t know why, but even sitting in a beach chair doing not much of anything, digging my toes into the sand every now and then, makes me really hungry. This week, we would like to share another Ciabatta recipe for those who are vegan or prefer having superfood like me.
But I won’t be spending a whole lot of time planning meals – as always, simplicity is key.
This sandwich can be assembled the night before or in the morning in advance of heading out to the beach or wherever summer takes you. I love the way freshly roasted peppers and eggplants smell and taste, but to make things even easier (and keep the oven off), jarred roasted peppers, and roasted vegetables from the prepared food section of the grocery store will make a fine sandwich, too.
Today’s recipes use all of my favorite late summer produce – zucchini, peppers, and eggplant. These are some of our all-time favorites and I hope you enjoy them as much as we do! Let get started with this Toasted Ciabatta with Roasted Summer Veg & Blue’s Cheese sandwich.
INGREDIENTS
50g walnut pieces, roughly crushed
2 eggplants, cut into 1 cm slices
1 zucchini, trimmed and cut into long, thin slices
2 red peppers, deseeded and cut into thick strips
3 tbsp of olive oil
1 tbsp of chopped fresh oregano
blue cheese for garnish
mint for garnish
METHOD
Place a large rimmed baking sheet on middle oven rack and heat to 425 degrees. When the oven has reached temperature, remove the hot baking sheet and pour olive oil over the bottom. Arrange the zucchini, red peppers and eggplant on the sheet; sprinkle with salt to taste and roast 20 minutes, until browned.
Slice the ciabatta in half horizontally and tear out some of the excess dough. Layer the bottom half with the bell peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, blue cheese, oregano, walnut, and mint; grind black pepper over to taste. Close the sandwich and press down firmly.
Toast the sandwich in a hot pan for 3 minutes on each side. Wrap sandwich tightly in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator. You can keep in the fridge up to 2 days.
NOTE FROM THE TWO SISTERS: We suggest you could try it with the fresh vegetable you could get in the market.
Make them take a photo, send us an email, tag us on Instagram, tweet us, anything. More stories on our #stellerstories, we want to see yours! It would make the day!
Joy is a career strategy for professionals & creatives coaching. I followed her since 2 years back. Following through her journey, she motivates people in everyday life. You might be saying, it’s her job but for me, her genuine of her smile is what motivates people to surround her. And I’m just a lucky individual.
Never could I deny the fact that I’ve spent a couple of weeks to complete this painting that is because I want to make this painting a perfection. I fell in love with her smile, I believed that every painter will be just like me.
Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around. So, don’t forget to smile!
Want to know more about her, do check out her Instagram and her website for more information.
It has been quite awhile, we were thinking to have our bedroom makeover. Since we want to have something organic, simple and soft however not totally black and white. Even though, as a minimalist, we prefer something with a little of colors to enhance our dreams with the unicorns.
While scrolling through Pinterest these days for color’s inspiration, and we spotted this trend with these 3 combinations – Champagne Pink (#F2D0CD), Pastel Grey (#CCCCCC) and Black Olive (#3F3C3F)
The three colors are gorgeous, soft in gentle neutral tones. Doesn’t they just work so well with the different shades of gray?
xoxo, Angela.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
When people are having Monday Blue, I am having Saturday Blue. Sometimes I couldn’t understand the word ‘compromising’. What does it mean? Is there really anyone think in my shoe when I don’t or when I get emotional?
Millions of years animal fight for land and food. For now human too. We think that the more we learn or open minded we are, the more humanity we are. No, it is not! Life is a cycle, sometimes we just have to accept the fact that we can’t change the world. However, I think everything happens for a reason. Maybe not for us but the future generation to understand. The only things we can do is to make our life a better one.
This drawing Blue Leaves represented my feeling now. Hoping that someone will understand me even I don’t do the same for them. Where could I find this selfless person?
“In every change, in every falling leaf, there is some pain, some beauty. And that’s the way new leaves grow.”
― Amit Ray
We’ve been enjoying the summer for more than a few weeks already, but it’s right now — when July melts its way into August — that the summer harvest is at its peak. Summer squash is plentiful, bouquets of basil are everywhere, and tomatoes are starting to ripen. It’s at this moment that you should be running into the kitchen to take advantage of the most bountiful time of year. In this heat, I’d like to forgo food altogether, or subsist on only fruit, but my stomach just isn’t having it.
This week we are going to share with you 2 recipes that are quite the basic – it’s simple, easy and we promise that it’s delicious. We decided to share you our all time favorite bread – ciabatta and serve along with a refreshing sauce – coriander chutney! You could always implement both of the recipes into other dishes!
Personally, I have been trying to get over my fear of baking with yeast and making bread in general. “Everyone who tries this homemade Italian bread loves it.” That’s what we feel after we first have ciabatta, thus we can vouch for that.
Ciabatta is, in the words of Field, “a remarkable combination of rustic, country texture and elegant, tantalizing taste. It’s much lighter than its homely shape would indicate, and the porous, chewy interior is enclosed in a slightly crunchy crust.”
Unlike most bread recipes that usually says something like “form the dough into a ball” at some point. This one did not – it is wet and sticky. At first, I was a bit skeptical when we are making it. However, there is nothing for you to worries at all if you keep on practice and follow the recipe. This is an excellent beginner recipe, as there’s not much kneading involved and you just kind of let the dough do its own thing, which is just fine, because trust me, it knows what it is doing.
Ingredients – 2 large loaves |
500g strong white flour
2 tsp of dried fast-action yeast
2 tsp of fine sea salt
Olive oil, as needed
400ml of warm water
METHOD |
Whisk together the flour, yeast, and salt. Pour in the warm water, and beat it well with a wooden spoon.
When the dough is well combined, flour your hands, stick ’em in a bowl, and pull parts of the dough up and slap it back down into the bowl. Do this for another 5 minutes. This will push air bubbles into the dough and create nice holes when it bakes.
Oil a large bowl, then plop the dough into that bowl. Drizzle your olive oil over the top of the dough, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and cover with at towel. Place the bowl in a warm spot and allow it to rise for 18 hours.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, then sprinkle it with flour. Flour your hands, and shape the dough into a long loaf, about 12 inches long and 4 inches wide. Sprinkle the top of the loaf with a just a touch of flour for strictly aesthetic purposes, then bake for 35-40 minutes, until the bread is lightly golden. If you tap the bread, you should feel like it’s hollow – that’s how you know it’s ready!
A slight twist on the classic, with a dairy-free option if you use coconut yogurt. coriander chutney can be blitzed up in seconds and add a pop to the spiced sweet beef. We love cilantro, ate it with most of the dishes! When we get a taste of the coriander chutney, we could never separate coriander and chutney anymore. What we really love about this coriander chutney is the texture. Don’t get me wrong, we love a good thick chunky chutney. But this particular chutney is wet, and thin, which makes it perfect for dipping.
INGREDIENTS |
large handful of coriander
knob of ginger, peeled and chopped
1/2 garlic clove, peeled and chopped
2 green chilies, deseeded and chopped
1 tbsp of light brown soft sugar
Juice of 1 lime
METHOD |
Blitz all the ingredients together in a food processor with 3 tbsp of cold water and a good amount of salt to make a thin, green sauce. It should be hot, sweet, salty and fragrant.
What is the first time you thought about summer? The first came into our mind is we need food that is refreshing and able to quench our thirst under the hot sun. We tend to eat meat that is less toxic like chicken, therefore, we are going to use beef instead. Moreover, for a meat lover like us, the chicken could never satisfy us. These succulent steak recipes are perfect for summer grilling. Gather some friends, throw some steaks on the grill and get ready for a relaxing beefy brunch. In order to balance up, the heartiness for the steak, ciabatta, and coriander chutney are been used in order to make this dish perfect. So let’s get started!
INGREDIENTS |
2 medium beefsteak
150g of plain yogurt
75ml of coconut cream
1 tbsp of hot curry powder
4 tbsp of mango chutney
1/4 iceberg lettuce, trimmed and shredded
2 tbsp flaked almonds
METHOD |
In a small zip-lock bag, combine 75g of the yogurt with the coconut cream, curry powder, and half the mango chutney. Add the beef steak and leave to marinate for at leave 20 minutes in the fridge.
Place a griddle pan over a high heat and let it get smoking hot. Grilled the beef steak for 3 minutes on each side. For a juicy steak, let it rest for 5 minutes before chopping it into thick slices.
Swirl the remaining mango chutney into the remaining yogurt and spoon over the surface of the bread. Top it with lettuce, sliced steak, coriander chutney and extra coriander leaves, and finish with the toasted almonds and extra slices of green chili.
NOTE FROM THE TWO SISTERS: Now you have this juicy, crunchy summer beef steak for the weekend brunch. Serve it with this Smurfy Lemonade for a chilling weekend. We hope that you like it! Whatever you do, just make them. You can make the Ciabatta bread and Coriander Chutney a week ahead. Store it in a dry and cooling place.
Make them take a photo, send us an email, tag us on Instagram, tweet us, anything. More stories on our #stellerstories, we want to see yours! It would make the day!
So, how’s your August so far? Time passes really fast, it’s already half past 3/4 of the year! At this point in time, it might be the hottest of the month, not to mentioned in additional with the man-made haze contribution around. If you didn’t know, Ghost’s festival is coming and there will be burning incense and papers during the Chinese’s July. I do respect the culture and religions but the actions are just harmful to the current planet, therefore, I really discourage the acts. I just hope people just contribution good things instead of the bad ones. As the earth is just so sick at the moment and she is not getting well anymore.
My apologies but being side-track about the environment. This week the painting that I would like to share was a friend of mine Igor, from Almaty, Kazakhstan. Well, I first ever fell in love with his photographs is all because of his beautiful scenographic shots especially those he took in the mountains at Almaty. Those scenes he took was just breathing-taking – I hope you could have a look at them. Since he hasn’t been online these days but if he does, he will never stop surprise his supporter!
It’s that time… what do you want to do this summer?!
Summer is already here. It’s always been our favorite season. After a seemingly endless winter the freshly warmed weather feels improbable, an impossible reality after months of negative degree days and layers upon layers of clothing. It may sound cliche, but the living truly does become just a little bit easier. We’re no longer bracing for the cold, but embracing sunny days and hot weather with open arms.
This year, we want to get the most out of the warmest months… as summer always hits and fades away quickly. Each year only a few things we hoped for has been done, before knowing the summer is gone. Therefore, we would like to spend and enjoy this summer wisely. While this summer we’ve got a plan and it starts with making a list. Do you have your paper and pen like us? And here is our bucket list for this summer!
Make Lemonade
Have a Picnic
Go out for an Ice Cream
Decorate your room
Learn something new
Drive somewhere
Go to the beach
Watch Sunset
Scream
Give someone a hug
Invent more creative recipes
Get a copy of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child”
Go on a hike and take a moment to notice the beauty of this life
Bake something new
Do some yoga
Visit a waterpark or amusement park
Watch Suicide Squad (it is coming out on the 4 Aug)
Search out more hidden place (like garden or cafe)
Go Geocaching
Make s’mores
This weekend I have a project for you: Write down your summer bucket list. Start by jotting down everything and anything you hope to do in the season ahead. Then post it somewhere obvious, as where it can’t be ignored. Well, that goes for us and what’s on your list? Let us know in the comments!
“Birds of the same feathers flock together, and when they flock together they fly so high.”
– Cecil Thounaojam
Last week, we talk about being alone. It’s good to have your own time and spaces. However, it can be unhealthy if you don’t get into the social. Thus there’s a need of balanced in everything in one life.
Sometimes, you will meet a person with similarity with you. You will find that you are able to work with them without compromising (which is one of the reasons making life easier and not to be alone). As both (a group) of you have the same aim and mindset, you are able to work towards the same direction. Things get done fast and maybe better.
You may say it’s okay for them to judge or even it’s okay that they don’t understand me. However, deep down in our heart, we are hoping that there is at least one person in life to understand us. At least I do, do you?
“When’re you girls making the pound cake for me? I just crave for it so much” said mom.
Well, this is when you can’t reject your mom request when she specifically asks you to make it. Therefore, we want to take the chance to share with you the mom’s favorite pound cake.
When coming to pound cakes, there are so many options you can come out with – citrus, floral or even honey 🍯. Therefore, today we will share with you the vanilla based pound cake and you could add whatever topping you like while making it based on what you prefer. In order to make the pound cake with more flavors we decide to add in the extra orange peels we had for Homemade Orange Marmalade we made earlier on for the day.
We would do the vanilla based pound cake with the extra orange peels we had for marmalade.We enjoyed citrus as it provides you vitamins and helps in whitening skins. So why not give it a try!
As a comparison to the sponge cake – soft and fluffy, pound cake is dense and chewy but a good slice of pound cake is all moist inside. You might even taste the sweetness of the juice from the cake when you put in your mouth. What we enjoyed the most would be the small bite of the fruits peels in the cake, it just gives elevate the cake with more texture.
Ingredients |
2 sticks butter, softened
1 1/2 cup of caster sugar
3 eggs
2 cups of flour
3/4 cup of milk
2 tsp of vanilla
1/4 cup orange zest
2 tbsp of orange juice
Directions |
Grease bread pan with butter and preheat oven to 300 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, beat butter until light in color {about 3 minutes}. Gradually incorporate sugar and beat until fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time and blend in on low.
Alternate adding flour and milk, add vanilla until smooth.
Add the orange zest and juice, fold in the mixture.
Pour into bread pan and bake for 1 hour 20 minutes {use toothpick test to confirm}.
Allow to cool and top with glaze.
For us, citrus pound cake is the best combination with Breakfast milk tea, so give it a try! However, instead of putting orange peels like what we did, this time, you can put in other dried fruits. Where you can easily get from the baking store or supermarket easily!
Last try it and share your pound cake with us, we love to see yours! Send us an email or tag us on Instagram!
Title: Dear Jordan Frey
Instagram’s account: @jordan.frey
You will never believe that it is already coming to the end of the July. While, my life is getting busy, full of surprise (while heading for lunch saw one of a lovely friend at the mall that I haven’t seen her for ver long time) and it never stops me with my painting…
The painting that I’m sharing this week was never been revealed before. Ever since the last completed portrait. Therefore, I would like to take this chance to share it.
The lady in the portrait that I painted named Jordan Frey, she is an amazing one! I have been following her through her Instagram pages for a very long time since I last spotted her. Jordan, she is a freelance fashion photographer is based in New York City. Her love for fashion and photography started when she was young therefore you could see her works with a unique style.
Remember once I had a conversation with her, she did mention how discovers her love for fashion through her lens. For a moment I thought we were pretty similar, as a comparison, I would want to discover people through my brushes!
We love Jordon, hope you like her as well! Happy Wednesday!
For those who has been following our blog, you’ll know that we love things that are simple yet with colors. We believed that with a minimum touch of colors it will bring the whole interior entirely differently. As we are talking about country-style, on the contrary, it can be complicated. It might be the last thing we want to compare them with the contemporary-style.
Even though I still fall in love country-style – they always come in bold elements, dominate by raw materials, filled with natural colors. And, bricks wall just made the statement – it just brings the whole atmosphere from the rural European to your home.
Speaking about my love for bricks, I, especially, love the white brick walls. It is pure, and it textures just elevate the look of the room the moment you enter.
My only worries for having a bricks wall is the maintaining, I worry it gets dirty over the time. Such as the cleanliness of the gaps in between the bricks (since I’m a neat freak with a sensitive nose). Of course alternatively, these days we could get wallpapers, I wouldn’t do so as it lost the touch of the bricks where I first for in love.
When I told my friend I’m alone at Starbucks chilling and doing work. They will be worried and asked to make sure if I am alright. For some people, they define being alone as lonely. They though that I am having any emotional breakdown. However, I don’t feel that I am lonely. Actually, I am happy being alone myself doing activities that I like.
I when to google the meaning of lonely and alone (It is not that I don’t know the meaning of it, just to make sure). For, being lonely is an emotion when you are a lack of companionship. On the other hand, being alone means having no one else present, just ownself.
So, why that person feel that being alone is lonely?
For me, I felt that the strongest person on the planet it is people who are alone. I always tell myself, “If you want to be strong, learn how to fight alone.” Doing stuff as a team is must easier and faster. Everyone get to help each other, you also get to learn from one another. But I love to learn and experience stuff in a harder way. (cause I felt that I will be learning more) Most importantly you don’t have to worry about people judging, you can be yourself when you are alone.
Why follow the crowd walking the curve road when the straight road is the better one (at least for myself)?
” Always stand for what is right, even if you are standing alone.”
It has been a traditional every since when we were young that our mom always would prepare marmalade with toast for our breakfast. It always will come along with a cup of English tea. When we were young we weren’t sure why she love to have marmalade but now we do. She defiantly has a sweet-tooth. Like her, as a kid we enjoyed the sweetness of the jelly with the peels in it, however, it got too sweet for me when I got older, therefore we decided to make our marmalade ourselves.
We started making marmalade and jam back in my late 18. We have been researching and tried numerous times during all those years and finally we mastered it. When come to making a good homemade marmalade is very challenging. As mentioned we prefer something lighter in flavor, therefore it mustn’t be overly sweet, with artificially flavored you find in the grocery store. And most importantly, the peels has to be hard and chewy.
The texture of our marmalade resembled the candied orange, and the taste was just out of this world. Simply heavenly. In order to achieve the texture like us simply, you will need some patience.
Some tips for you when making this Marmalade, always stir the Marmalade frequently to prevent it to burnt. Store it in some beautiful air-tight sterilized glass jar. As we are making different jam now and then, we also prefer to tag a label on them so that we will never forget when do we make it. Never you know that Marmalade can be refrigerated up to 1 month or freeze, up to 6 months. Thus, making these jars of marmalade make excellent gifts!
So let’s get started, it can be fun making with your family or friends!
Ingredients |
4 to 5 medium navel oranges
1 lemon, zest finely grated and juiced
6 cups water
5 cups of caster sugar
Directions |
Wash the oranges and lemon thoroughly. Cut the oranges into 1/8-inch slices using a mandoline, removing the seeds as you go. Stack the orange slices and cut them into quarters.
Place the oranges into a stainless steel pot. Add the lemon zest and juice and the water to the pot, set over high heat and bring to a boil, approximately 10 minutes. Once boiling, reduce the heat to maintain a rapid simmer and cook, stirring frequently, for 40 minutes or until the fruit is very soft.
Test the readiness of the marmalade by placing a teaspoon of the mixture onto the chilled plate and allowing it to sit for 30 seconds. Tilt the plate. The mixture should be a soft gel that moves slightly. If the mixture is thin and runs easily, it is not ready
When the desired texture is reached, transfer the marmalade to sterilized* glass container, then seal.
*To sterilize your glass containers and lids, place them in a large pot filled with water (covering about 2 cm above the top level), then bring to a boil. After 5 minutes, remove from the heat, then transfer to a drying rack using tongs. Dry upside down, then fill with warm jam/marmalade and replace lids immediately.
We hope that you like it! Whatever you do, just make them.
Make them take a photo, send us an email, tag us on Instagram, tweet us, anything. We want to see yours! It would make the day! We love when we get to see the dishes you guys make. Lastly, don’t forget to check out more “Behind Plain Canvas” at our Steller!
Never did I know, it’s going to be my 4th years working in the creative industry. Ever since the day I sign up for the job, it seems like each day has been challenging. I never thought it will be easy being a freelance designer, in fact, it’s harder than what many thought.
Quoted from Mahatma Gandhi, “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”
Once I was being told that I’m a workaholic. That’s truth as I don’t really hang out or sleep in during holiday instead making use of those time to learn new skills. Spending time to research, study and practice my skills whenever I’m free. Therefore, it has been my habit to pay visit to different designers’ websites to learn to and get inspiration from them.
Remembered Richard Francis Burton once said, “Little islands are all large prisons; one cannot look at the sea without wishing for the wings of a swallow.”
Constantly, I always able to learn new perceptive from many designers online. And, one of my favorite bookmarks would be Corina Nika, a designer who based in Kefalonia Island. I enjoyed reading her blog, she always shared wonderful articles as being a freelance designer herself.
Nonetheless, she also own amazing photos – sharing her tropical beach trips, it’s always inspired me and cheer my day!
Let’s face the fact, Pinterest is just addictive as you’re drinking your best glasses of cocktail all night long.
While these days my habit got out of control, I supposed. I’d say I spend a good half of my day scrolling, scrolling, scrolling aimlessly. And, I can’t help but notice a recurring theme in both wedding and interiors world in particular. Then usage for the colors Lilac Gray.
It’s one of the ten Pantone colors for the year, it might not be the most outstanding one as compared to Rose Quartz, Serenity, and Butter Cup it is just a perfect colors if you are looking at a subtle, dusty and, well, gray.
People may have judged you or despaired at what you did. People who don’t understand might even think that what you are doing doesn’t have any prospects. They might think that being an entrepreneur is daydreaming and it’s a waste of time.
Thus, we believe that “be sure of yourself, never be embarrassed or discouraged at what you are doing”. As every individual express differently and everyone have their own strength.
Probably, what doesn’t mean for them, doesn’t mean that it won’t work on you. Always look at the past and learn from your mistake, move forward and work for the better. “Experience is like a jewel, and it had need be so, for it is often purchased at an infinite rate.” – Joe
Using the experience that caters to you and do something big and amazing for yourself.
This year we’ve been focusing on eating healthier – even though we already eat pretty healthily. However, I knew we could do much better. Our family (especially our parent) prefers sugary, calorie-laden snacks rather than real food, therefore, we are working on it. In fact, we don’t buy snacks, except for some special occasion. We feel like it is possible for us to eat healthy at home by moving our hands.
We’ve been adding more fish into our diet. We started to notice that when we bought meat, it would also go to waste. So our family kind of just stopped buying it as often. But fish is something we all enjoy and even fight over.
Whenever we make salmon for dinner, we usually keep an extra piece for breakfast just to make this salad – loaded with good fats and omegas! The well-marbled, pink-fleshed fish but in truth it’s only recently that we’ve stopped refusing salmon’s presence on our plate. It’s quick work with a stocked pantry and especially speedy if you time it with leftovers from a salmon BBQ. It’s bright, briny, and laced with tender herbs making it a pleasure to eat while being incredibly good for you. Thus, making salmon the kind of fish our family like to work with.
Thank goodness we have citrus in the cold weather to brighten things up. We made this Avocado-Citrus Salmon Salad recipe for breakfast the other day and it felt like we were bidding goodbye to cold weather as we enjoyed it. This salad serves as a bit of a summer reset when the inevitable burgers, ice cream cones, and frilly, fruity cocktails outnumber a plate’s green things. Now we can appreciate its delicate sea flavor, tender flesh, and all its valuable health benefits.
Ingredients |
For Salmon |
Two salmon fillets
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
salt and pepper, to taste
For Salad |
3-4 cups mixed salad vegetables
1 large pink grapefruit, peeled and sectioned
2 medium navel oranges, peeled and sectioned
1 avocado, thinly sliced
¼ to ½ cup sliced sunflower seed
Juice of 1 lemon
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1tsp of raw honey
1 tsp of balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper, to taste
Directions |
Preheat oven to 200 degrees C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place salmon fillets on baking sheet. Squeeze fresh lemon over the top and drizzle with a little olive oil. Season well with salt and pepper. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until cooked through.
Place spinach in a bowl or on a large serving platter. Top with citrus, avocado, and cooked salmon. Sprinkle the top with almonds and green onions. Squeeze the fresh lemon juice over the top and drizzle with the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
Remove from oven and let cool before assembling the salad.
We also have been observing, some of our family members have had heart trouble. So part of our motivation to eat healthier is in regards to heart disease. When we started reading up on heart disease, we decided it was really time to make big changes. As they say, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
We beg you to try this recipe now and make a change for yourself too. We hope that you love this recipe, please share with us your table stories by tagging us #ourtablestories!
Jean Paul once said, “Every friend is to the other a sun, and a sunflower also. He attracts and follows.” It’s so true, I like how Jean Paul quoted it, every good friend you ever meet, they lead you just like the sun while sunflower acts as a symbol.
While lovely Martha is just like the sunflower to me – she has a big heart and that is why people attracts to her. Knowing Martha, she is an amazing baker based in Indonesia. If you by chance looking at her Instagram page, and you can see that she is a huge lover fan of Disney and some popular Japan’s characters. I love her sweet and simple lifestyle, they just look gorgeous.
Each day I visit her Instagram account it will cheer me up with her amazing IG feed. Recently, she has been just promoted becoming a mom, you might want to check out her daughter account as well; @helloadeline_. As she is really cute!
Who doesn’t scream for Ice Cream? We all scream for Ice Cream!
They are colorful and come in varies ways such as waffle cones, popsicle stick, and the classic scoop in the bowl. Eventually, they are our best friend forever which will never hurt our hearts. Moreover, they bring us happiness and would never let us down. They are cold, creamy and flavourful food taste excites all senses especially in the hot summer like now. I’m blaming Pinterest with all delicious looking Ice Cream. Probably, I will need to work-out more often to enjoy more of them.
Therefore, get out now to enjoy your summer with some Ice Cream!
Hence, let’s celebrate National Ice Cream Month together!
Happy National Ice Cream Month!
xoxo, Angela.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
“There’re a sunrise and a sunset every single day, and they’re absolutely free. Don’t miss so many of them.”
― Jo Walton
Every day, there’s a sunrise and sunset.
Every day, there’s a person coming and leaving you life.
Every day, there’s a beginning and an ending for an issue.
Every day, there’s happy and sad.
However, we could not control what is going to happen into us to our life. What we could do is only to enjoy every moment of it and learn to treasure it. As, someday we may use the value for the better.
It summer-time! What you thought of having during the summer? Mine? It will be none others but my favorite Vietnamese rolls! I start enjoying Vietnamese food with the influence of my friends back at work 3 years ago. I enjoyed Vietnamese food because it’s light in flavors, the fresh crunchy texture, sometimes it can be crispy but always juicy and filled with fragrant. Also, I could have many bites without worrying my weight. Recall back, I think I will at least have it once a week. Then, I thought since I enjoy it so much I should start learning to make it myself as it wasn’t hard to do it. Right now I believed, that’s a crazy fascination of what I love to eat.
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When come to making these summer rolls, we love to visit the wet market and check the ingredients. Taking a stroll at the market, there are so many fresh fruits, vegetables, and herbs for you to choose at. It’s always quite interesting walking around the wet market as times, you could communicate with the stall owner as compared to the supermarket where you could just grab your items and go.
In fact, summer rolls were what first hooked us on the fresh flavors of Vietnamese cooking: so much lighter and punchier than the fried snacks I was expecting. Gourmet magazine’s description – “a salad packed into an edible container” – sums them up nicely.
Since we love summer rolls, we try to come up with ways to enjoy as many of them as possible. In this sense, Vietnamese summer roll is just brilliant! It is easy and quick to make and tastes fresh, crunchy and creamy all at the same time. It is a perfect combination!
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I believed that not everyone will fall in love with the rolls especially when it is almost raw in flavor. For instance, my mom doesn’t really like the raw taste, so we discuss and decide to make it two ways. In order to cater both our parent and our liking. This week, we decide to share you our recipe for the Vietnamese summer rolls we always have at home!
Ingredient |
For the filling |
200 g of rice noodles
250 g of prawns
200g of lean pork meat, sliced
1 cucumber
1 carrot
1 bunch of coriander
1 bunch of mints
½ a bunch of chives
100 g of bean sprout
For the sauce |
3 cloves of garlic
3 tbs of fish sauce
2 tbs of sugar
250 ml of water
Half a lime
chilli
Directions |
The filling|
Preheat the oven. Line the pork onto the parchment paper. Drizzle it with olive oil and season it with salt and pepper. Bake it in the oven for 10 minutes. Leave it to cool.
Cut the prawn in half. Poached it under hot water for a minute. Drain and leave it to cool.
Boil the rice noodles, too, as instructed on the packet, drain off the water and then rinse briefly in cold water. Drain off the water again.
Peel the cucumber and the carrot, then cut them into small sticks. Halve the chives, so that their length corresponds to half of the rice-paper. Rinse the coriander and mint with cold water. Pick the mint leaves off the stalks.
The sauce |
Peel and chop the garlic. Chop the chili into small pieces.
Mix it all with the fish sauce and stir in the water and the sugar. Squeeze the lime, and add the juice. Moreover, you can also use vinegar instead of lime juice. Garnish with coriander to your taste.
‘Ready to roll’?
For the rice-roll|
Briefly, wet the rice paper with lukewarm water, and place it on a large plate. Careful! Don’t wet the rice paper too much, since otherwise it may tear when you roll it.
First of all, place the mint a bit above the bottom edge of the rice paper, then distribute a small portion of rice noodles on top. Leave the side edge free. Then place the cucumber and carrot on top. Later on, insert the chives so that they protrude from the roll at the sides. Lay the prawn halves on the heap of rice noodles.
To roll them up, first place the bottom edge of the rice paper over the filling, then fold over the side edges of the rice paper towards the filling and finish rolling it up. Press it all firmly together.
For the egg wrapper roll |
4. Place the egg roll wrapper on a large plate. Repeat step 2, however, lay the pork instead of the prawn.
5. To roll them up, first place the bottom edge of the egg roll wrapper over the filling, then fold over the side edges of the egg roll wrapper towards the filling and finish rolling it up. Add some egg wash at the side of the side of the wrapper and press it all firmly together.
6. Heat the oil on high heat to 200°C, deep fry the roll until golden brown or for 8 minutes. Drip the oil and leave it cool.
Now dip them in the sauce and enjoy! Please try it and share your thought with us by sending us emails, tag us on Instagram or twitter. Thank you, happy Friday!
This has been one of my favorite portraits, that I’ve painted for these two amazing people I met in my life. Among the friends I’ve known so far, they have been one of the sweetest couples of all. I’ve always been curious, have you ever wonder the places, people, and things you got will change you?
I’ve always been curious, have you ever wonder the places, people, and things you got will change you Probably, I believe that everyone will experience it at least once in their life in an unexpected way. As for me, I did meeting someone whom I respect and shown me the impossible, possible.
Every day, while people comes and goes, but we will still meet new people in our life along the way. All of us are different and we do have barriers getting to know each others. Hence after we been through each journey, we’ll always be learning new languages and write new stories.
Importantly, they have participated in my journey which I want to show gratitude to. Now, I can’t wait to jot down my stories from my latest journey from Penang. Please stay tuned for it!
No matter is rose gold or copper pipe, copper could be the most trendy style of the year!
Once, they are hidden underneath the coated paint, but now we no longer playing the safe game. Now, we can say that copper has been a stylish element for everything and anything. Especially, it plays a huge part in the rustic, industrial-like design.
Slightly retro and luminous, copper fits every room of the house. From pendant lamps in the kitchen to a vase in the bedroom or round coffee table in the living, it gives a raw yet refined touch to every corner of your home.
And its subtle glow and warm tones pair especially well with the dark colors that are currently all the rage in kitchen design. Whether you want to make a big statement with copper in your kitchen or work in just a little.
Copper looks great with plaster colored like baby blue, mint, or pale pink. Nevertheless, copper has been a good fit with neutral tones or texture like white, black or marble. Why not try it yourself by adding some raw touch at your home!
Happy Monday!
xoxo, Joe.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
There are time when we couldn’t trust someone, it is hard to give in all our trust. We are like roses, we protect ourself with our thorns. People get hurt when they came near us. However, only a good gardener will take care of the rose rather than plucking it. Thus neither the rose or the gardener get hurts.
“Some people grumble that roses have thorns; I am grateful that thorns have roses.” ― Alphonse Karr
Our Table Stories | Meals Making It is never a simple task when you are all by yourself.
Moms has been superwomen at all time, they have been serving us and teaches us since we were young. Until now, there’s an unspeakable concept – that moms or women have to be the one to cook. It seems like it is their job to serve the family.
Our mom has been working for her entire life (except the fact she is still the home-maker). And since then we were able to learn taking care ourselves when she was away for work. Therefore, we have never thought that making a meal is a mom’s job. That making no sense since we are the one who are having it!
We believed that every meal, every single member of the family should “get involved” in making it. No matter what the task you might get; cooking meals, preparing the table, washing dishes and etc, we promised that you will enjoy the meal much more than you expected.
The concept of “gathering”, it wasn’t just gathered together but it also encourage us to play a part. It is never a tedious task when everyone shares their parts but it surely an impossible job for just one person to handle themselves. Therefore, in our home, we encourage everyone to be part of it.
That’s why our family love making sushi wrap once in awhile. It’s the easiest way for gathering, you just have to prepare all the ingredients and get ready for everyone to be involved.
When we talk about sushi, at times, we tend to categorize the sushi into two buckets – authentic and fusion. For authentic places where you can get a wide range of fresh nigiri sushi. Else for fusion, you’ll have pages upon pages of inventive maki sushi. Which do you like the best?
If we had to choose between the two, I’d take the one with the stoic Japanese dude forming little pillows of rice with a thin slice of aquatic bliss on top. However, that’s not to say we don’t enjoy the raucous places with frat boys slinging sake bombs, phonebook-sized menus, and of course the California Roll.
However, today we are rather feeling a little fancy thus we are going to have California Sushi Wrap instead. This is a great recipe when you feel like being creative but don’t want to spend too much allowance! Moreover, they are a great source of protein, low in calorie and cholesterol, gluten-free and high in omega 3’s. Let’s dive right in!
When it came to making your own, it may seem like a lot to buy. But, most of the ingredients could turn into staples (like nori sheets) and non-perishables like nori, sushi rice, and vinegar will last a ridiculously long time in your pantry.
Sometimes, you’ll end up with 4-6 sushi dinners for the price of one in those non-so-good restaurants. Therefore, why not start making with us for yourself and your family! It’s really simple and fun!
Ingredients |
1 Japanese Cucumber, sliced
Bean sprout
12 Crab meat stick
1 Avocado, sliced
Prawn roe
2 cup of rice
2 tbsp of Rice Vinegar
Pinch of salt to taste
6 sheet of nori, cut to half
Wasabi Mayonnaise Sauce
(simply mixes 1:2 of wasabi and mayonnaise together.)
Directions |
Put rice and water into the rice cooker (put rice in first, then add water until the 2 mark on the cooker is reached). Push button to start cooking. When done, the button will pop up and light change to “warm”. Let the rice sit in the cooker without opening the lid for about 15 minutes to complete steaming.
Put rice into a glass bowl, pour sushi vinegar and salt over rice and toss gently with a rice paddle to mix vinegar into rice. Note: please be gentle so you do not mash the grains of rice.) Leave it to cool.
In order to achieve a crispy texture for the sushi, leave the nori in the oven for 5 minutes at 200°C.
Now you can enjoy tiling your sushi up. For us, we layer the rice on the nori sheet then bean sprout, cucumber, crab meat and avocado. We then roll it up and garnish it with prawn roe and drizzle with the wasabi mayo sauce.
We hope that you love #ourtablestories, please share with us your!
Yesterday, I have just come back from my short trip, it has been fun! And, I’m looking forward to sharing my journey with you all. Thus, before that happen, I might need to clear the works on my desk!
The painting that I’m going to share, it’s a portrait I did for Gizem! I’ve been following her Instagram for a very long time, her account has been my favorite as she has been an inspired individual to me. I would say she would be my perfect model.
Sometimes, I believed the reason I fall in love with painting and cinematography because of beautiful people and place I encountered. To capture the beautiful moment of them! #APaintPortarit
Monochrome has been the trend, it highly influences the fashion, interior design, anything and everything else. People, who are a minimalist like us, monochrome will never go wrong! It’s just a timeless classic at all time.
Have you ever wonder what to wear? Whenever you can’t decide, it just makes sense to pick up either the black or white dress. It can come in prints, stripes, and even color blocking. Working with the monochrome is so easy, it’s none of the worries of having colors that don’t compliment each other. They just make the perfect partnership – it’s modern, contemporary, and assertive—but never in your face—and smacks of self-possession. We have some interior tips to share with you when you are playing with these two angles.
Texture
Sometimes, monochrome it may look intimidating to some people. That is why texture played a big part when you style the room. You may want to use something that softens the ambiance – such as knit throws, velvet cushions, and shag pile rugs, furniture that give cozy furnishings. This would make your room much inviting, as it will remove the sharpness of the room.
Composition
Whenever it came to the composition, use of the two hues play a critical part. The risk of the space may look a bit monotonous is higher. To avoid this, you could implement a golden ratio – play with the height and composition of your room. Th placement on your shelf or the prints on your wall, it was recommended that they are placed and hung at very heights. This allows the room to be more lively and interesting.
Give a touch of life
There is always a great way to introduce a third element to a monochrome room. We love it by adding the plants – the greenery will instantly make the black and white space more welcoming. And, most importantly plants always breathe life into any room.
Lighting
How could we ever forget about lighting? Lighting is the key to defining a large monochrome space. Having floor lamps can very useful as it will provide an interesting element for unused corners. You can always add a beautiful accent for the middle of a living room, simply add a table lamp.
Hope these tips work for you, Happy Monday!
xoxo, Joe.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
When there is no such thing as black or white and even gray. When there are such things as bad or good and even middle. Sometimes, we simply just couldn’t put a label on a person or thing. There has been so many shades, view, so many issues that couldn’t be defined.
“Ignorance of the world has often made majority believe that life should be only black and white. It suggests that times, you have to choose sides – so the world of colorful gradients goes unadmired.”
Did someone ever ask you, “what’s your comfort food”?
For both of us, there wasn’t a standard definition when it comes to comfort food. If it makes us happy, whenever so, that’s the one! I guessed. And for our case, we have quite a few on the list, as it’s delicious serving just makes us comfortable and happy enough. However, if we have to mention one of them, seem like pasta has won the race.
Pasta has been a staple food for us all year round, it’s the best carbon for us to cook all the time and anytime. It gives us rooms of creativity, especially the homemade ones, it textures never have disappointed us.
Remember the first time I step into a kitchen, the first dishes I ever made, it was tomato based pasta, before that it wasn’t my all time favorite maybe because of the raw taste of the tomato, the paste that I have tried then was too sweet and there wasn’t much flavor that suits my taste bub. When I get older, I start to love tomato based pasta, and when it’s cook with herbs the flavor just elevate. It simple but the taste just way more than you could imagine.
I have been telling myself, enjoy food from good chef no matter where they come from, and also to cook more and experience a better life in what we eat. There goes, “you are what you eat”!
This Friday, we absolutely love to share one of our all-time favorites tomato based pasta for your weekend brunch – Tomato Basil Chicken Mozzarella Bolognese. Most of the time bolognese can be oily. Trust us for once, unlike the others bolognese out there, you probably wouldn’t feel the greasy at all. It’s rich in flavor thus it has a light texture when you have your first bite, subsequently, you will just ask for more after every serving.
Well, at least my sister, Angela has already finished 2 full serving when I’m preparing the second pot of the pasta. We promised It will be the family all time favorite pasta from now on. Shall we get started?
Ingredients |
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 pound ground chicken or turkey
2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
1 heirloom or regular tomato, finely chopped*
1 rounded cup heirloom cherry tomatoes or regular cherry tomatoes, halved*
1/3 cup red wine
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
salt + pepper, to taste
1 cup fresh basil, chopped
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
4 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced
1 pound spaghetti
Direction |
Preheat the pan, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a large skillet set over medium heat. Following with the ground chicken and brown all over, breaking up the chicken as it cooks. Subsequently, add in the garlic and cook 1 minute.
Add in both the cherry and regular tomatoes, plus any juice left on the cutting board (if you prefer, you can chop the large tomato in a food processor for fast prep) to the skillet. Cook another minute and then add the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil, red wine, balsamic vinegar and 1/2 cup of water. Bring the sauce to a simmer and cook 10 minutes or until the sauce has thickened just slightly. Season to taste with salt, pepper and crushed red pepper.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and boil the pasta until al dente. Drain. Preheat the broiler to high. Remove the bolognese from the heat and stir in the basil + parmesan
Finally, add in the pasta to oven safe bowls and spoon the bolognese over the pasta. Spread the mozzarella cheese on top and place under the broiler for 30 seconds to 1 minute. WATCH IT CLOSELY, this goes quick!
Remove and serve immediately with fresh basil and parmesan.
And here is it, your very own Tomato Basil Chicken Parmesan Bolognese! It is really simple and tasty, I have to stop here my sister finishes all of it and left nothing for me. Most of all, we hope that you’ll be enjoying our recipe. Please try it and do share us your thoughts by sending us emails, tag us on Instagram or twitter .
June is approaching the end, thus, my work seems like never-ending stories for me. Works are piling up each day yet I have only got 24 hours every day.
There is the time, I blame myself want to make the works to its perfection, therefore, there was endless changing. The truth there was nothing perfect, it’s a bad habit for a designer try to make it perfect! Sometimes, I’ve been telling myself to be messier! hahas.
Back to today painting, it is a portrait I did for my dearest friend, Saw! Saw, he is a talented artist. I will be always amazed by the artistic work that he was done, please check him out, I believed you will fall in love with his arts like me! #APaintPortarit
Jules Feiffer once says, “A pop of colour never hurt especially blue!”
Wet, cool and calming, Ice blue has always been the color that makes us feel calm and relaxed. While this summer, Ice Blue has become our favorite. Ice Blue is a little dreamy than the sky blue we have find. It’s a bit more pale yet captivating, this seasonless frosty blue is a refreshing take on signature pastels.
This is one of the colors we will use for our home’s interior as it is less overwhelming. It is open and expansive, this restful blue thus acts as a stress reducer. The best combination we like to use with ice blue is white, as it brightens up the spaces.
xoxo, Joe.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
Angela: What should we get for dad this year?
Joe: Maybe cook for him?
Since that the case, we are planning how to give our dad a little surprise!
Every family has it own table stories, so for us. A little fact about our family – we might be the “dinner” kind of household as we hardly have breakfast together at all. Our mornings has been rushing all the time. When we were younger it all about schooling, then when it come to adulthood it all about working. For our parent, they have been so hard working all their life, we barely see them on our dining table for breakfast. That’s the story for our family, but this year we were thinking to give him a different morning and make him a breakfast that he deserves it. Who doesn’t it deserve it, everyone does and especially the dads.
A practical man like him, it’s very challenging to crack his smile on his face. It is hard to think what kind of breakfast is filling and give will him energy at work! Therefore, homemade Beignets with a cup of black coffee will surely make him smile! Don’t you think so?
Coffee and Beignets? Yeah, we are pretty sure there could not be a better combo than that. It’s kind of perfect and sort of meant to be. Thus, it is just an excuse for us to want to make this cute little Beignet!
Apart from giving our dad little surprises, this is a simple homemade delight for all ages! Like my sister, she has been stealing it when I’m making. FAs for those who doesn’t like to dip it in coffee like my older sister, we suggest you could always dip them in chocolate sauce as well. I have created this Coconut Chocolate Dips. Simply melt your chocolate using a water bath till smooth, remove from heat. At a cup of coconut cream in bits by bits to the chocolate, and you are good to go!
So let’s get started!
Ingredient |
1 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cups lukewarm water
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
3-4 cups bread flour
canola oil, for deep-frying
powdered sugar, for sprinkling
Direction |
To make the Beignets, mix the yeast, sugar, and water in the bowl. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes. Once the yeast is proof and foam up add the eggs, salt, heavy cream and melted butter.
Add 2 1/2 cups of flour and mix on medium until combined. Continue adding the remaining 1/2 cup of flour slowly until it’s all incorporated and at a time until the dough pulls away from the sides and forms a smooth ball (about 4-6 minutes). Place the dough on a floured surface and knead until smooth, adding a little more flour as needed (about 8-10 minutes). The dough may still be a bit sticky, but shouldn’t be overly so.
Place the dough in the bowl, cover with some plastic wrap on top. Let rise for 2 hours in a warm spot.
When the dough is ready, place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll out into a square or rectangle. Roll to 1/4 inch thick. Use a pastry cutter to cut into 3×3 inch squares (about 25 squares).
Place a deep, heavy bottom pot on the stove and add enough oil to fill the pot about 1 to 1 1/2 inches deep. Turn the burner to medium and preheat the oil to 350 degrees. I would recommend using an instant read thermometer so you know the exact temperature at all times.
Once the oil is ready, fry 4-6 at the time depending on the size of your pot. Use the slotted spoon to flip them over every 30 seconds. Fry for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown on both sides. If they are taking longer than 3 minutes to brown you need to turn your burner up and make sure your oil is at the correct temperature. Remove with slotted spoon and place on paper towels to drain. Repeat with remaining squares. Dust the warm beignets with powdered sugar on both sides.
Whatever you do, just make them.
Like, we’re begging you. Make them take a photo, send us an email, tag us on Instagram, tweet us, anything. We want to see yours! It would make the day! We love when we get to see the dishes you guys make. Lastly, don’t forget to check out more “Behind Plain Canvas” at our Steller!
Le Plain Canvas wishing, Happy Father’ Day to all dads!
Once, I ever thought that a piece of rubbish into the ocean, a flame onto a tree or burning a piece of paper won’t affect much to the world. Once, I ever thought that as an individual I won’t even get the power to change the world. However, when I grew up, I discovered that I was wrong. I may think I am the only one who have the mindset but other individuals were might just like me.
We are all wrong! Every action we contributed, affects the community, environment, earth, galaxy and the universe by bits. So why not we come together and do something right, to make our earth, galaxy and universe a better and beautiful one?
Start by recycling your trash, stop polluting the environment or even reduce the usage of personal transport to decrease the carbon footprint. Stop burning down trees, to save the protected animals’ home. By contributing bits by bits in your everyday lifestyle, “Even a small group of people can change the galaxy.”
It has been raining these days, I definitely missing the warm sun’s rays, neither I could deny that how much I love hiding in my bed when it’s raining! Who doesn’t love it; laying on their cozy bed with a warm cup of drink or soup?
It rains heavily again, days like today when you feel so dense as you couldn’t achieve any plans you planned. There is no food better than a bowl of Corn Chowder that warms your cold soul, it is always a treat after a chilly day outside.
It is also one of the kinds of breakfast that you would love to have to kick start your day with! We love to share our home-style Corn Chowder, it is one of the simple dishes you could have it all the time even if you are busy in the morning!
Ingredient |
6 cups of fresh sweet yellow corn, husked and silks removed and kernels cut from cob
3 tbsp of butter
5 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 medium yellow onion chopped (1 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 clove garlic, minced
5 cups of water
500g Yukon-Gold potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 tsp dried thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup half and half
1 tbsp honey
2 – 3 tbsp chopped fresh chives
Direction |
In a pot, melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and bacon and cook, stirring frequently, until onion has softened and just starting to brown around edges, about 8 – 10 minutes.
Add in the flour and garlic and cook 1 1/2 minutes. While whisking, slowly pour in 5 cups water. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly, then stir in corn kernels and potatoes.
Add in thyme and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a light boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and allow to simmer, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Cool, it for 20 minutes.
Transfer 2 1/2 cups of the chowder to a blender and blend until smooth. Stir the mixture back into the pot then stir in half and half and honey. Sprinkle each serving with chives.
Don’t you find it easy? For those busy ones, who have no time to make it in the morning, but want it as breakfast, you could always make it and keep them in the freezer and boil it whenever you want! Give it a try, our home-style Corn Chowder, we promised that you will love it just like us, and it served well with toast.
Make it or whatever so. Like, we’re begging you. Make them take a photo, send us an email, tag us on Instagram, tweet us, anything. We want to see yours! It would make the day! We love when we get to see the dishes you guys make.
Lastly, don’t forget to check out more “Behind Plain Canvas” at our Steller!
While these days, every Wednesday has been so exciting for me to share my printing to all. This week, I’m sharing another “Dear Irina” portrait painting again. For those who follow us, should have known that I have posted Dear Irina | Volume 2, the week before. We love you to check it out whenever you like to!
For those cat lover, never forget does check out on her via Instagram @virinka and her lovely little friends in play!!! #APaintPortarit
I loved the concept of kinder living – it’s all about greener choices for a kinder home. It’s not just adding green elements in our homes but it involves everything from what you used, what you eat and how you live in every day of your life.
These couple of years, I have been reading articles from amazing people and practicing it myself. I enjoyed the concept, “lets us be kinder, it all starting from how we live”. And, the first rule of a kinder home, the ultimate aim is to not involve with any unnecessary wastage. Who doesn’t love shopping, we all love to! However, ever thought how long would you be keeping that item you bought?
Every so on, we regret our action, it not just about money we spent – it’s about we being unkind to our environment when you decide to throw it in the bin. In order to prevent it, it’s always good to plan ahead to and decides the usability of the goods. It can be very tedious involvement but this could help out in reducing lots of wastage.
There goes,” the less you need, the more you have.”
Finally, I would love to highlight a book I found out lately. It’s called Kinder Homes (Vänligare Hem), it was published by IKEA. It has been encouraging us in so many different ways. The book is all about a greener living and making your home more sustainable. And upon any chance you planned to read it, we hope you will share with us your thought.
xoxo, Angela.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
There is always a down time for you, you may feel hopeless, lost and depressed. However, it is okay to feel so. You have to feel all this emotion before you truly understand how does happiness feel like.
“The sun will turn into darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day.”
It has been a tough week, working has been taking a lot of time from us but there are two things that always heal us quickly – eating delicious food to gain back energy and cooking tasty meals for the love ones to connect back to them.
While working we lost track of time and we have little time to connect with our family and loved ones. People who work in our industries, to have balance life it all depends on your will. To embrace your works and your personal life you need to find ways to reconnect them.
While cooking meals, it has been therapeutic for us, it’s a form of an art, a form of a communications tool. While you are in the kitchen, it is beautiful even when you are sifting flour. Every touch is so comforting and it will calm your heart from all the works that have buried you.
Therefore, I enjoyed every breakfast moment to kick start my day. A simple meal that you prepare to own self or to your loved ones will bring you all the happiness in the beginning of the day of work.
We have a simple recipe to share with you for the breakfast. It just takes you 10-20 mins or so to be prepared and send into the oven. The real beauty of these bite size snacks is that they’re completely compatible 365 days a year with a wide range of toppings. Best of all, they’ll be on your breakfast table before you get to work!
Ingredients |
1 package frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 cup of sliced cherry tomato
1/2 cup of chopped streaky bacon
1/2 cup of cubed breakfast ham
Mozerella cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
1 egg
Directions |
Preheat the oven to 180°C.
Unfold the puff pastry sheets onto a lightly floured work surface. Lightly roll the pastry with a rolling pin to seal the perforations. Using a 3-inch round cookie cutter, cut out six circles from each sheet of puff pastry.
Transfer six pastry circles onto each baking sheet, spacing the circles about 2 inches apart. Lightly score a circular border 1/4-inch from the edges then prick the centers of each pastry with a fork.
Top it with cherry tomato, streaky bacon, ham and mozzarella cheese, sprinkle salt and pepper to taste.
In a small bowl, whisk together the egg with 1 tablespoon water. Brush the edges of the pastries with the egg wash. Bake the pastries for 15 to 18 minutes or until they’re golden and puffed.
Remove the pastries from the oven and allow them to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Craving more healthy breakfast recipes? Stay in touch on our Le Plain Canvas Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.
Besides, we’re excited to launch our Steller page this weekend, for those who love to check out more stories behind the Canvas’ stories on Steller!
For those who doesn’t know, in fact, I love Catarina very much. Among all my penpals she is one of the very few I stayed in touch with. She is a graphic designer based in Porto, Portugal. Having a unique eye with arts, her perceptive just surprise me every time.
Very much like me, she craves for arts in everyday life, someone I respect and always have fun with. I miss her… Please do check her out on her Instagram @catdinis_ for more stories!
Green is everywhere. It has been the colors of nature and the most restful color for our eyes. It’s soothing and has a calming effect on us.
The most common color in the natural world, it’s second only to blue as the most common favorite color. However, the green trends we would love to talk about today, it’ll be eco-friendly. The environment is trending. With concerns continuing to grow for the planet, eco-friendly innovations are popping up in many aspects of life. For us, we also apply this environmental friendly trends at homes as part of our lifestyle.
LED Lights
LED lights have become a fast-growing trend in homes – and no we’re not talking about LED lights at raves. The compact, sleek LED bulbs used at home are much more energy efficient than standard incandescent light bulbs. It’s not just about the type of lights, but also how they are manipulated. LED lights are being used as decorative lighting fixtures to transform bedrooms, living spaces and bathrooms with color, shapes, lines, and accents. With a combination of energy efficiency and décor potential, LED lights are sure to have long-term staying power, something we don’t mind investing too.
Reusable Materials
We been applying to our lifestyle is using reclaimed wood and recycled materials, cork, bamboo, recycled metal, ceramic and rubber as the flooring materials in kitchen and bathroom design. While, we also try to find furniture that’s in metal alloys, concrete, and fiber and incorporating fresh materials, as it gives a stunning modern feel to our home.
Reduce and Recycle
Have you ever open your kitchen’s cabinet, and discover that here are so many old containers or jars? Here is a very simple way to get rid of them; you could either recycle or reuse them. For us, we avoid buying or keeping plastic at home. For our home, we would prefer glassware and jars – for those old containers or jars, don’t always throw them away, you can always repaint them and give them a new life.
Reuse, reduce and recycle is the eco-friendly trend that has already be part of us since young. It teaches us, never take things for granted!
We hope that you kick start your Monday with the awesome Green!
xoxo, Joe
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
Morning readers, time passes so fast and it’s already June. It just feels like only days since I first started The Moon’s Insight series.
This week I require a longer time to complete my tasks as I used a “not-so-good” method to solve it. Taking a longer time or route doesn’t mean it is a “not-so-good” way, there is it advantages in it. During the journey, you may fall and feel lost but the wrong decision is also a way for you to discover what is right for you.
“Life is a maze in which we take the wrong turning before we have learnt to walk.” – Joe
When we grow up in a society that grocery lists of ingredients on our packaged foods has grown longer by the minute. With so much being thrown at us, it’s beneficial to work by taking specific steps to simplify our daily living simple as possible.
Tell us! Who doesn’t love yogurt and everyone does. Don’t we? The love of having yogurt, it has been a practice since young. As a result, we love having all kinds of yogurts; from the plain greek yogurt to the tasty fruits yogurts. They just taste so good before or after meals. We have been noticing that it has been a trend these days – it encourage us to put all the super food in a bowl, in a much efficient way.
For us, the love of having yogurt has been a practice since young. As a result, we love having all kinds of yogurts; from the plain greek yogurt to the tasty fruit yogurts. They just taste so good before or after meals. When we get older, we love to make our own yogurt – we have been also noticing that it has been a trendy these days – to put all the superfoods in a bowl, in a much efficient way.
Therefore, we love to share with you, our own favorite Topical Yogurt Bowl in this humid weather.
It is very simple, their ingredients could be simply finding it at your house. Also, we’re here to promise that it will be your best companion early in the morning.
Ingredients |
*Amount needs for 1 serving
2 kiwi
1/2 mango
2 tbsp of oatmeal
3 tbsp of chia seed
2 cups of plain greek yogurt
a drizzle of honey (optional)
Direction |
Sliced up your fruits into smaller pieces. In this recipes, we used mango and kiwi making a topical yogurt.
Serve the greek yogurt in your favorite bowl and place the fruits, oatmeal and chia seed on it.
Drizzle some raw honey on it for more flavor.
“Good food is very often, even most often, simple food!” – Anthony Bourdain
I loved Irina’ Instagram page lots. She is an interior designer and also a cat lover… I fell in love with her amazing account filled with lots beautiful portraits and her kittens! I painted two portraits, and this was never revealed to anyone yet.
Both Irina and her adorable kitten and cats are just way too beautiful as models for my painting inspiration and I would love to thanks Irina for being an inspiration to me! Please do check out on her, @virinka and her lovely little friends!!! #APaintPortarit
We are drawn to warm texture and blue decorative accents that remind us the sea and sky, and you will probably be drawn to Mediterranean interiors like we do.
We’re officially going into Summer, time for a change in our living room. We did some research and we decided to give it a go with a “Spanish modern” since it can either can go for formal tone or rustic and casual.
The blues, the whites, and the oceans, what do you think of those? We are looking forward to sharing our new living room decoration upcoming next month!
Now, you would never say, goodbye to the Monday blues!
xoxo, Angela.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
Making the first step trying a new task, going to a new place or even making a conversation with a stranger are always a hard thing to do. As we will be afraid of the new challenges approaching us, afraid of failing or even the way people view us. How without stepping the first step, you will never know the impossible that will happen to you.
“We are an impossibility in an impossible universe.” – Joe
Honey, herbs, and citrus are three wonderful things to be found in your kitchen, they are essentials in our daily life and both of us love having these at home. We love to call them the best remedy at home for all kinds of weather, especially the bad ones. It is very easy to use them, and we love to share with you, our best remedy for cold – Honey Lemon with Mint and Thyme.
Ingredients (Makes 4 – 6 servings):
4 tbsp of raw honey
6 cups of warm water
2 lemons
springs of lemon thyme
lemon slices to garnish
Instructions:
In a jar, stir the raw honey with warm water until the honey dissolved.
Squeeze the lemon into the jar.
Add in slices of lemon. Muddle in a few springs of thyme just before serving.
We are so much more alike, we enjoy the freedom as much as capturing moments. We share the same love while making our footstep closer to it, our journey just never ending. She is such an inspiring individual and every day she is still surprised me through her point-of-view. #APaintPortarit
When we talk about nude, there is no only one color. We pretty much call it flesh tones. And we fancy about it!
We decide to use the word nude, but there’s really an array of shades that covers — it could be mustard, cream or blush. They’re colors that look great on any color skin and in our everyday lifestyle; it’s a group of universally pleasing colors. There is nothing on a person more beautiful than having them wear their essence or skin tone. It’s a color representing every individual personality. It’s our skin!
“To be naked is to be oneself. To be nude is to be seen naked by others and yet not recognized for oneself.” – John Berger
Xoxo, Joe.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
“There is nothing either good or bad but it is thinking makes it so. Thus, life isn’t just white or black. It’s a million of grey areas, don’t you find?” – Joe
Who doesn’t love Bruschetta Bar for breakfast? You are able to create your own sweet or savory flavor combinations. What is great about it, it is unfussy, gorgeous looking with incredibly good tastes of freshness.
The idea is to let you imagination run wild and make all sorts of toppings that go well with the grilled bread. We are using fresh sliced bread for this recipe. We like to toast our bread with butter in the oven for 5 minutes at 180°C, making it crunchy and crispy light brown – just the way we like it! Here are some suggestions — but really, the options are endless.
Homemade Herb Pesto + Smoked Salmon
Remember the Homemade Pistachio Herb Pesto sauce made for the Mushroom Pesto Pasta? Once you make this, you will want a jar in your fridge every day. It is that good! The Homemade Pistachio Herb Pesto sauce is spread evenly on top of your toast. Slices of smoked salmon getting pile onto the sauce. With the baked bread, it’s crunchy goodness.
Herb Cream Cheese + Smoked Salmon
Spread your favorite herb cream cheese on top of the toasted bread. Pile smoked salmon (or you can place it like a rose shape like what we did) on top of the cream cheese. A sprinkle of shredded parmesan cheese will balance out the smoked salmon; salty profile. One of our favorites!
Avocado + Cherry Tomatoes
Smash avocado together with chopped red onion and season it with sea salt and pepper. A good smear of Avocado on toast and nested sliced the cherry tomato into the avocado spread and followed with a drizzle of olive oil. Your brain will think it’s a pastry!
Like this recipe? Leave your message in the comment bar below, we would like to hear from you.
Title: The Toddlers
Instagram’s account: @adelinekv
There are times we were wondering why time passes so quickly when we get older. When we’re a child, a day could last so long, we see the world differently and how I wish I was like the toddlers in the portrait I’ve painted. Instead of dreaming the impossible we should live our dream. #APaintPortarit
“The ocean stirs the heart, inspires the imagination and brings eternal joy to the soul.” quoted by Wyland.I couldn’t be more than agree, don’t you?
I always find peace of mind when I spend my day under the sun, at the beach, closest to the sea. I will definitely pack a picnic basket filled with my favorite food, drink, a comfortable blanket and a book that I could enjoy my day with. Oh, never ever forget to bring your iPod along to filter the noise other than the wind and wave. There are days, it makes me really envy people who stayed near the coast, it is such a luxury of living. I wish I could move to one of those LA beach house.
I can’t help but want to blame it for all these beautiful beach fantasies that Pinterest brought to me. Nevertheless, it’s an awesome refresher for me at work, I just can’t wait to count down for my beach trip that I have been planning.
xoxo, Angela.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
“Be clearly aware of the stars and infinity on high. Then life seems almost enchanted after all. There is always two side of story in every problem, you are the one who decide which to believe in.” – Joe
Feel like having something light and refreshing? There is nothing more perfect for your food-loving senses. A simple, minimalist ingredient combination where every flavor and texture just shines. We would like to share you this simple, beautiful and luscious buttery Mushroom Pasta with homemade herb pesto sauce. This is the perfect “we-have-no-food” food. Even when our fridge is at its emptiest and our grocery shopping procrastination level is at its highest, we just about always have the stuff on hand to make this pasta.
Let’s start with the Homemade Herb Pesto Sauce, ingredients needed for the Pesto Sauce are 1 cup of Pistachio, 1 1/2 cups of greens (spinach, basil, and parsley), 3/4 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese, 1/4 cup of olive oil, 1 clove of garlic, juice of a lemon and pinch of salt and pepper to taste. Toast the pistachios in a small pan over low heat with no oil and butter – stir and shake the pan until the pistachio are fragrant and toasty. In a food processor, combine all the ingredients for the pistachio pesto and pulse until mostly smooth.
As for the Mushroom Pasta, the ingredients you will need for the mushroom pasta are 8 ounces of penne pasta, 4 tbsp of butter, 16 ounces of fresh sliced white mushrooms, 1/4 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese, a pinch of salt and pepper and fresh parsley for topping.
Start with cooking the penne pasta according to package direction. Drain and set aside. Heat the butter over a medium heat pan. Add the mushrooms, saute until the mushroom are golden brown. Add the cooked penne pasta to the pan and stir to combine, adding parmesan, salt, pepper, and fresh chopped parsley to taste.
Divide the pasta into a bowl and top with a generous spoonful of the Pistachio Pesto Sauce.
We hope that you enjoy this recipe, tag us at @leplaincanvas if you have made your version of this.
She is a lovely young medical student based in Mexico, who love to travel, enjoy photography and adventure a lot and she is also a baker too, check out her on her account when you free and you will like her as well! #APaintPortarit
Dita Von Teese once says, “You can be the ripest, juiciest peach in the world, and there’s still going to be somebody who hates peaches.” We do agree to it but it’s will never be us.
Sweet, fresh and light, Peach has always been the color that we love. While this summer, Peach Echo has become our favorite. Peach Echo is a little punchier than the usual soft peach we have find. It’s a bit more playful, but can be toned down with cream for a classic play on “peaches and cream”. Peach Echo has also a blushy undertone but is bolder and more orange it is the perfect color for the sunny summer.
xoxo, Joe.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
“The warmth and kindness of your heart, make you more beautiful year after year. You work from morning till dawn, yet you kept spreading your love to me. Thank you for always being there for me. Happy mother day and I love you.” – Joe
Not all mother behave like the Manhattan, some enjoy like the Brooklyn. While others whom just love movies like ours, with a specific preference. We decide to let her experience what she deserves – a private movie screening like the celebrity!
Before the date, send her a personalized invitation for the private screening. On that day itself, let her walk down the red carpet. We served her with champagne or wine, and some sophisticated dessert and bits – as for us we self-made meringue and mini pretzel.
Moreover, make sure you prepare a comfortable seating area, with cushion and throw-over just for her, if you want her to submerge in her movies without interruption, you could prepare her a butler service (of cos you are the butler like us).
Let’s get her settled and you could start your movie rolling! We make sure that this would definitely surprise her on the Mother’s Day!
Do you know how important table decoration can be? We never define them by sizes instead of how fascinating it could attract guest attention. There will always have awkward or shy moments when it comes to a new environment. Thus, the beautiful table decoration can always get people felt home. It definitely brings the dining experience to another amusing way.
This would be the last post for How to throw the Sweetest Mother’s Day Brunch project. If you recall what we had mentioned, we are using egg as the ingredient for the 3-courses meal. Therefore, we decided to use some egg as a decoration on the table. It is an easy craft that suits all ages, especially kids who want to give their mom a surprise!
Supplies Needed:
Baby’s breath / Limonium (we’re using dried flowers that we had)
Scissors
2 six-inch pieces of 20ga. copper wire
Hard-boiled egg
Permanent marker
Direction:
First, cut Baby’s Breath / Limonium into small pieces.
Use one piece of wire to make a circle fit the top of your egg, twisting the ends around each other to secure.
Use the second piece of wire to wrap cut pieces of baby’s breath to the circle, each overlapping the last piece.
When you come back to the beginning, cut wire.
Draw face, place crown, and display.
*Note – You don’t have to worry about food wasting, the hard-boiled egg can be consumed within a week time. Thus, remember to store or display them in a cooling area.
Someone once says, “Dessert is a meal what a dress is to a woman.” Tiramisu is the most sophisticated dessert in the world, it as delicate as it was being prepared. Nevertheless, it worth the try for such a good one, don’t you agree?
This time round, we decided to incorporate two kinds of desserts – Tiramisu and bread pudding which is both our mom favorite.
This Tiramisu Bread Pudding is baked with classic tiramisu flavors with strong coffee and milk in it. The bread was custardy and moist, yet not soggy. It is totally mind blowing as the coffee flavor was perfection. As soon as we’ve made our very own homemade version, we are eating it by the spoonful.
The ingredients needed for this recipes are 1 1/3 cups of milk, 1 1/4 cups of whipping cream, 2 tbsp of instant coffee crystals, 6 eggs – lightly beaten, 2/3 cup of granulated sugar, 1/3 cup of brown sugar, 2tsp of vanilla essence, 12 slices of torn white bread, 1 cups of home-made cream cheese topper. For home-made cream cheese topper, you will need 3/4 cup of whipping cream, 200g of cream cheese and 1 tbsp of powdered sugar.
Preheat the oven to 200°C. Stir the milk, whipping cream, and coffee crystal in a large bowl until the coffee are dissolved. Then, add in the sugars and vanilla essence into the milk mixture. Fold in bread pieces into the mixture until it moistened. Evenly divide into 8 custard cups, filling each cups almost full. Bake for 30 minutes or until it puffed, leave it too cool.
In the meantime, prepare the cream cheese topper in a mixing bowl. Beat the whipping cream, cream cheese, and powdered sugar until soft peaks form. When ready served, just simply add the cream cheese topper onto the pudding.
*Tips – It’s okay if there is leftover cream cheese topper, you can store the cream cheese topper in an air-tight container for up to a weeks.
Guinness Beef Stew with Mushroom Pie, this’s comfort food that will be loved by everyone — a dish that’s easy to prepare and can feed your mom for the whole noon. The stew is rich, creamy and the tantalizing browned meat melt in your mouth. The worst thing is you never will feel greasy at all, please don’t blame us if you can’t get enough of it.
The ingredients needed for this recipes are 800g of braising beef – cut into 1 inch cubes, 1 chopped large onion, 2 tbsp of all-purpose flour, olive oil, 400g of sliced button mushroom, 300ml of beef stock, 250ml of Guinness, 2 tsp of tomato paste, 2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar, 1 tbsp of oyster sauce, 375g of block ready-made butter puffy pastry and 1 beaten egg.
Start off by placing the beef and flour in a bowl, season it with salt and pepper, mix well. Heat up the pan and pan frying the beef with a dash of olive oil, until brown on all side. Remove it from the heat and set aside.
Heat up the pot with olive oil, add in the onion and cook it until its golden brown. Subsequently, add in the mushroom and cook for 5 minutes and add in beef, beef stock, Guinness, tomato paste, balsamic vinegar and oyster sauce in it. Bring it to a boil, reduce to low heat and simmer it for an hour or till the beef is tender.
*Optional: You can be creative, for us, we love to put a layer of mashed potato as the base.
Here come the final step, layer the mashed potato in an ovenproof bowl, followed by the Guinness beef stew fill it till almost full. Leave it to cool down for at least 20 minutes, allowing the beef to absorb the sauce. While waiting, prepared the puff pastry. Roll the puff pastry on the board to 5mm thickness. Apply a coat of egg yolk on the rim of the bowl. Slowly, layer the puff pastry onto the bowl and pinch the pastry to it. Apply an egg wash for a browned and shiny crust. Bake it for 20mins on 200°C. When done, you are ready to serve.
*Tips: Since Guinness Beef Stew with Mushroom Pie requires more time to be prepared, we suggest you make the Guinness Beef Stew overnight so you don’t have to make it in a rush.
For friends who have been following our blog post all this time, you would know that we will be sharing some party tips and a 3-course meal for Mother’s day. Today we will be sharing the appetizer recipe, Salmon Bacon Salad with Red Wine Olive Oil.
Ingredients for the recipe, 300g of Red and Green Oak Leaf, 200g of streaky bacon – chopped into bites, 100g of smoked salmon, 2 eggs, and vinegar. As for the sauce, you will need 2 tbsp of red wine vinegar, 2 tbsp of olive oil, 1 tsp of mustard and pinch of salt and pepper.
Start by frying the bacon in a pan till golden brown (for about 5 minutes).
At the same time, you can start working on the poached egg. Make sure your egg is fresh. Add a little of vinegar to a pot of steadily simmering water. Create a gentle whirlpool with your wooden spoon, spill the egg in the water, this step allows the egg white wrap around the yolk quickly. Cook it for 3 minutes and remove from the pot, let it drain on the kitchen towel before being served.
With all preparation being done, you can start placing the oak leaf, bacon bites and smoked salmon into a salad bowl, mix it well. Lastly, place the poached egg on the salad and drizzle the red wine olive oil onto it
*Tips – Make sure that the water should not be boiling hot while you poaching eggs. It should be more than simmering as this allow you to have a clear view of the pot. Last but not least, never add salt in the water, to prevent the eggs white from breaking up.
Hello, it May, we are having something different A Paint Portrait this week. We are going to host our very first Paint Portrait Project in this community.
A special column dedicated to all mom in the world. Let’s not just be me, we are challenging all of you to paint a portrait to represents your Mother. Don’t be afraid to express, just pick up your pen or brushes and share your love with us!
We would love to see all the amazing talents out there, upload your artwork onto Instagram and simply hashtag “#PPPmotherday” when you finish yours! Cheers!
This coming Sunday is a special day dedicated to all the Mother in the world. Any ideas what to get for your mom? Well, it’s the hardest quest to solve, isn’t it? It seems like there weren’t any gifts are suitable for them other than a queen treatment they deserved! On such special day, we have come out with the sweetest mission to make them feel most comfortable!
The secret mission begins with messing up her alarm clock – let her sleep in late for Sunday’s morning. We suggest preparing a jar of cold pressed juice served along with some fresh blossom for the day. Place next to her bed to give her the warmest welcome upon her awake!
Don’t you agree that there is nothing can easily impress the mom (we believe all mom just like ours)! They are good at everything, also, the best home cook so lets’s not try to impress them with complicated dishes when you wasn’t sure about it. We’ve planned and come out with these ultimate recipes for Mother’s day that can easily to be prepared.
It’s a 3-course meal with staple ingredients that you can get it at home. One of the main ingredient that we love to introduce is the egg. Eggs are highly fulfilling, thus, it tends to make you eat fewer calories, helping you to lose weight. Most importantly it can use it almost every kind of dishes. Now, it time to show your mom some love by cooking them!
Salmon Bacon Salad with Red Wine Olive Oil
The brunch starts off with a healthy Salmon Bacon Salad with Red Wine Olive Oil. It looks simple but it can be the hardest dish of all. Show your mom how you can actually perfectly poached an egg!
Guinness Beef Stew with Mushroom Pie
Then, it comes to the main dish that everyone will fell for, it’s Guinness Beef Stew with Mushroom Pie, we ensure that your mom will fall in love with this dish like ours! The smell of the tantalizing browned meat will drive her crazy!
Tiramisu Bread Pudding with Cream Cheese Sauce
Lastly, what is a party without a dessert? Tiramisu Bread Pudding with Cream Cheese Sauce for the mom who love coffee. This bread pudding is simple yet elegance for the brunch!
“Little Miss Egg” Table Decoration
Never ever underestimate the power of decorations, they always served an amazing visual entertainment. All moms are still girls in heart, they love pretty thing and this for sure will create a pleasing atmosphere before the dishes to be served. (a simple craft for all ages)
We hope that you will love the idea we share with you for Mother’s day. It doesn’t have to be expensive to create a home-party! The smallest gesture could be the biggest surprise, personalize a sweetest Mother’s day party to your mom! Lastly, remember let her feel cozy and comforting at all time!
Want to get a hold of these recipes and craft tips? We are going to share with you in full details the next few days. Stay tuned!
Someone did ask, “How are so happy each day?” I answered, “We can be happy if we choose to.”
No ones actually know how to stay happy while we are being occupied every day. We tried to escape from reality but that doesn’t help in a the long run. With a simple change in our life, we could make a huge difference which is also one step to a happier lifestyle, at least that is what I thought so.
I enjoyed the policy of Being Positive. It was introduced by a good friend, four years ago. She told me that, “Every problem come with a solution, why are you upsetting for things while you can face it with a smile”. Therefore, I always tell myself to stay positive!
Last year, I started to read the book Spark Joy by Marie Kondo. Where, I’ve decided to take the first step, discharging all the unnecessary things in my life. It begins by removing boxes of clothes, books, and stationary that no longer spark any joy to me.I’ve started living as a minimalist, and surprisingly I’m happier every day. I felt that I’m living with less stress, distraction, with more freedom, more time. All things that could make our life a more simple one.
You are becoming what you eat. The food you eat influences your biological nature. You are what you eat, drink, and think.In order to maintain a healthier lifestyle, eating moderate is important. I also tell myself never obsess with certain favorites but ensure that all nutrition are being consumed.When you’re eating healthily, your body will feel much lighter and that lead to a happier lifestyle.
We find happiness for being a minimalist when being a lot less is more. We hope that you find your way too! Happy Monday!
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
“Words are ever so powerful when they are used positively, I see and feel the beauty and power in them, it is like a honeycomb, sweet and comforting to the soul! A stillness that permeates a sense of understanding and healing to the core.” – Joe
When we walk into a bakery, fruit tarts are always the first things that catch my eyes. The fruits are glistening like oversized jewels, nestled on a layer of luxurious pastry cream, encased in a buttery and flaky crust. No one could ever resist it!
We love to share you this delicate classic dessert of all time – Mixed Berries Tart.
For the pastry, you will need 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup of granulated sugar, 1/8 tsp of salt and 1 stick of cold unsalted butter.For the vanilla pastry cream, you will need 3 tbs of granulated sugar, 1 tbsp of all-purpose flour, 1 tbs of cornstarch, 3 egg yolks, 2/3 cup of milk and 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract.For the topping, you will need 4 cups of mixed berries, mint and powdered sugar for dusting.
To make the pastry: in the bowl combine the flour, granulated sugar, and salt and mix it well. Add the butter and crumble it well will your finger tip. Shape into a dough, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the pastry cream: In the bowl, beat the granulated sugar, flour, locus flour and egg yolks till pale yellow. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the milk and vanilla and bring to a simmer. While stirring, pour half the boiled milk into the sugar mixture until combined. Then pour this mixture back into the pan with the remaining milk. Cook, whisking constantly until the mixture thickens. Be sure to scrape the sides and corners of the pan while whisking to prevent scorching. Pour the pastry cream into a pastry bag. Let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for 1 hour.
On a floured surface, roll out the dough to 1cm thickness. Transfer to four 5-inch tart dish and trim the edges for a smooth rim. Line the pastry with parchment paper, fill with pie weights, rice or beans and bake for 5 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 260ºC. Remove the pie weights and parchment paper. Bake until the crust is golden, 15 to 20 minutes more. Let cool!
To serve, spoon the pastry cream into the crust, arrange the berries and mints on top and dust with powder sugar.
*Tips: Homemade tart crust looks complicated and time-consuming to prepare, thus you can either buy the pre-made pastries from your nearest mall or mix ground graham cracker crumb with melted butter for the crust. Remember to preheat the oven for 30 minutes before baking your tarts.
You could also use the leftover berries with our Smurfy Lemonade recipe too. It will be the best combination for having both of it at the same time. May the odds be ever in your favor.
Hello, it’s Wednesday again! How was the week so far?
This week the portrait I would want to share is one of my lovely friend Masha (a.k.a. Mary Boyagi) and her kitten, a photographer based in Sydney. She specialised in food photography as well as social media marketing. If you want to get to know her more, you could check out her exciting Instagram page, @socialime as well as her website at www.socialime.com for more details.
Hope you all like the painting, cheers on Wednesday!
It’s the last Monday of April we are going to try and crush that Monday morning!
Our bench holiday might not look quite like this, but we can always dream of it. Dreaming of the sun, sea and air with the waves pounding on the shore, and the light breeze on our face. Laying down on beautiful fabrics and having ice cream to cool down from the heat. Well, now we blame the Pinterest for the inspiring seduction and day-dreaming.
Still feeling blue? More holiday and home inspirations heading your way. Stay tuned!
xoxo, Angela.
Credit | All shots used on the mood board via our Pinterest boards.
“To see the earth as it truly is, small and blue in that eternal silence where it floats, is to see riders on the earth together, brothers on that bright loveliness in the eternal cold – brothers who know now they are truly brothers.” – Archibald MacLeish
There are so many reasons to fall in love with these thin layers of baked taco. They are always served creatively and in a colourful manner. As they can be minty or even sweet and spicy, that’s why with the flavours added up it just make them unbelievable tasty! Don’t you agree?
This week, we love to share our favourite home-style taco at all time – Salmon Taco with Cucumber and Mint Sauce.
The ingredients needed are salmon fillets with skin, 2-3 tsp of five-spice powder, 2 tsp of olive oil, a handful of fresh coriander, a bunch of fresh mints, 150g of plain fat-free yoghurt, a cucumber, 2 cloves of shallots, a fresh red chilli, pinch of sugar and4 hard-shell corn taco.
Season the salmon by rubbing them with five-spice powder, olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Heat the pan and cook them for about 5 – 8 minutes or until the skins are crispy. Remove them from the heat and flip the salmon over.
Prepare your garnish and mint sauce ahead. For the garnish peel the cucumber into slices of ribbon. Place them together in a bowl along with finely sliced shallots and chilli. As for the mint sauce mix the chopped fresh coriander and mints into the plain fat-free yoghurt. Sprinkle pinch of sugar and salt to taste.
Place the golden brown taco on the plate and flake over the salmon fillets including any crispy skin. Add the fresh cucumber and coriander leave along with drizzle bits of mint sauce on it. Place the prepared topping’s amount based on your liking.
Tell us, who’re ready to have some Salmon Tacos with Lemonade!
This week the portrait I painted is one of my lovely friend Esmee Rudolf, an online fashion influencer and also a photographer. An inspiring individual that inspired me everyday life though her monochrome style Instagram page, @luxblog.nl. It’s always filled with clean, classic snaps, create mystery behind her frames, therefore, want to know her more you should have to check out both her Instagram page and her blog at www.luxblog.nl for more of her beautiful works and updates!!
When it gets all crisp and cold there is nothing you want to do more than make your home cozier. And the simplest way to do that is to just start tossing sheepskin rugs around like confetti. Draped over a chair, sofa, on a floor, on a bench- they add fabulous texture and a high-end look while upgrading the fuzzy, awesome factor of wherever they land by like, 100 percent. You’ll be downright anxious to get started on those work projects with a seat like this waiting for you. As soon as the rug in there it sucked every bit of light, brightness, and cheer right out of the room, giving a flokati vibe to it too!
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